Circle of the Earth
by Ceressky
Summary: This fic contains an original character. A girl joins Quatre and Heero while they are at the Sanc Kingdom Institution. Is she an enemy or is she a friend? HeeroxOC
1. Prologue

Disclaimer: I don't own Gundam Wing or any of the characters from the series. I do own Arys Walker. I'm just writing this for my own enjoyment and (hopefully) the enjoyment of others. Yada, yada... I'm not making any money so don't sue me, um, please. 

Circle of the Earth 

Prologue: 

_A.C. 195_

"Arys Walker. It's time. Wake up." 

The words echoed through the fifteen year old's mind. 

Arys Walker. That was her name. The words were familiar but the voice was not. 

It's time. Time for what? She had just gone to bed, for goodness' sake! Surely Oz couldn't be attacking again! She had just defeated a whole army of Oz mobile suits a few hours ago. 

Wake up. Those last two words seemed to trigger something in her mind. It was not sleep she needed to wake up from, but something else... 

"Arys. It's time. Wake up." 

Her mind jerked back to half-awareness. What did they want? Couldn't they see that she was exhausted? Something else... She needed to wake up from something else, not sleep. For one second, she knew and then denied it. 

"No! Leave me alone!" Arys tried to wrap the comforting darkness around her, to get away from that voice. 

"Wake up." 

No! But even as she pushed the voice away, it carried her with it, up and up and up... toward a level of consciousness she had not experienced for a long time. 

The light blinded her. 

"Dim those lights!" 

Arys slowly opened her eyes. The voice had said those words. She blinked once, trying in vain to see something, anything. 

"Relax. Your brain needs to reconfigure how it gets image input." 

That voice again. At first, Arys had found it frightening. Now, it was comforting. She blinked again as the world began to coalesce into fuzzy objects of light and dark. 

"It's working. The optic nerve is functioning again." 

A different voice, not as comforting as the first one. Who were all these people murmuring to each other around her bed? She needed to touch something, feel that this world was real. 

"Can you feel this?" Someone touched her hand. "Blink once for yes, twice for no." 

Arys blinked once. The world was finally coming into focus. The ceiling above her was smooth and white. She never thought something so trivial would be so nice to know. 

"Auditory, optic, and tactile senses all check." 

"We'll check the other two later. For now, that's all she'll need to function normally." 

"Where am I?" Arys' voice squeaked out, sounding like a metal chair slowly scraping across a tiled floor. 

A man wearing blue scrubs and a white lab coat pulled her to a sitting position. He smiled at her. 

"Arys, you're at the Antarctic Outpost on Earth. My name is Dr. Jay Lansing." 

Arys gazed at him silently. Vague memories were beginning to come back to her, but they seemed to linger at the edges of her mind. Finally, she gave up trying to remember and the memories fled. 

"Arys, how far back do you remember?" 

"Five years, "Arys stated flatly. "Nothing before that." 

The doctor sighed. "I didn't want to be the one to tell you this, but..." He gestured to a coffin-like structure sitting on the floor near the wall across the room. "You've been living in a virtual world for the past five years. We had to wipe your memory of anything before A.C. 190 so that you would accept the simulation." 

Arys' steel-gray eyes widened in astonishment. None of it had been real? The people she had commanded, served under, befriended, and loved, weren't real? How did she know that this world was even real? She looked around the room, taking in everything: the doctors looking at her with fear hidden behind a professionalist bravado, the "coffin" sitting in the corner like a discarded cardboard box, the stark white walls, the digital clock by the door that said 7:23 SET, and Dr. Lansing, who waited for her response with patient compassion. 

"Is this all real, Dr. Lansing?" Arys waved her hand weakly to indicate the entire room. "You're a real person?" 

Dr. Lansing put a hand on her shoulder. "Yes, Arys, this world is real, I'm real, and unfortunately, the battles will be real. 

The concept was almost too much for Arys to handle. She had wasted, wasted, the past five years of her life fighting battles that had never happened. She bit her lip to keep the confusion and anger from bubbling to the surface. 

"Why was I in that box?" Arys asked. She needed more information before she could fully trust the doctor. 

"It was the only way to train you... as a Gundam pilot." 

Arys blew out a sigh of relief. At least that was still the same. But why use a simulator to train her? 

Dr. Lansing saw the question in her eyes. "The Zero System, Arys. You're one of only three people who can handle using it without going insane. And that's because you had already merged with your Gundam's computer by the time we installed it." 

"Silverwind. Yes, I remember." 

"Your Gundam is in the cargo bay, being prepped. But before you can see it, we need to get you through rehab." 

Arys swung her legs off the side of the bed and stood up easily. No nausea or fatigue assailed her. Perhaps some things would carry over into this world, the real world, after all. Dr. Lansing looked on, amazed at her quick recovery. 

Arys disgustedly swatted a hand at her hospital gown. "Rehab won't be necessary, but I would like some clothes." 

Dr. Lansing smiled. "Of course." 

  
______________________________________ 

  
"It functions the same way." 

"All controls are configured as in the simulator." The tech was a little nervous. He found this girl who stood a mere five feet intimidating. 

"Weapons?" 

The tech handed her a readout. "Full arsenal: Double beam sabers, Shiv rifle..." 

Arys scanned the paper and waved him off. "Fine." She handed the readout back to him and walked over to the console connected to her Gundam. 

The tech, knowing he was dismissed, watched her walk away. He shook his head. "Only fifteen years old..." 

Arys ignored his comment. She reached up to touch a metal contact positioned behind her right ear. 

Transmitting her thoughts to the Gundam had come in handy in her virtual world. She hoped to put it to good use in the real world. The Gundam transmitted back diagnostic data. Arys nodded, pleased. The techs had done a good job. 

"Arys Walker?" 

Arys lowered her hand to her side. "Yes." 

A man in uniform stood in front of the computer console. He was graying at the temples, but he still looked the part of a commanding officer. He held a hand out to her. 

"I'm Commander Gabrin. I'm in charge of this base." 

Arys said nothing in return, but she accepted his handshake. He knew who she was. 

"You've quite impressed us, Arys." 

"Why did you remove me from the simulator?" 

Gabrin seemed almost grateful for the question. 

"Arys, the Earth needs you right now. Oz has taken over the colonies, but now they want Earth too. We can't let Oz have it." 

Arys clenched her hands. Her Gundam she knew, and Oz she knew, but there was so much she did not know. She touched the transmitter behind her ear. 

_Download my mission profile._

The commander continued his speech, not realizing that Arys now already knew what he was going to tell her. 

"There is a country here on Earth called the Cinq Kingdom. Their princess, Relena Peacecraft, is a total pacifist. She is defenseless against attack, so we are sending you to be part of her defensive force." 

"Part of?" Arys already knew the answer. 

"There are two other Gundam pilots protecting her. Only one of them has his Gundam available for use. Their names are Heero Yuy and Quatre Raberba Winner. They are both excellent pilots, but I'm sure Noin would not mind your help. Relena's chauffeur, Pagan, is the one who asked us for help. He has probably informed Noin already of your coming. If not, do not reveal your identity until absolutely necessary." 

Arys nodded. 

Gabrin pulled a disk from his coat pocket. "This contains everything..." 

Arys pushed it away. "I already know what I need." 

"How?" Gabrin calmly placed the disk back in his pocket. 

A chill wind began to blow through the cargo bay as two Leos came back from guard duty. Arys gazed up at her Gundam as the wind whistled by them. Her midnight-black hair whipped around behind her. One side of her mouth quirked into a grim smile. 

"The wind told me," She replied.

*******************************************************

  
Author's Note: I wrote this entire series about two years ago so it isn't my best writing. I'm just curious to see how it will do here at fanfiction.net. ^_^ Yes, I know, original characters are not usually well-liked in the GW world. Please no flames. E-mail me at Arys_Walker@gundamwing.org if you have any comments.

~Ceres Sky 


	2. Chapter 1

Standard Disclaimer: I don't own Gundam Wing and I'm not making any money off it. 

Placement in the timeline: This story begins at episode 32 or The Glass Kingdom (whichever one it is). I'll be following the series plot while somehow putting Arys into the storyline. All inconsistencies are due to the fact that I'm afraid to watch the episodes over and over again lest my family think I've gone crazy. Circle of the Earth

by Ceres Sky

Chapter 1 

Arys jammed the kickstand into the ground and stepped off her motorcycle. She pulled off her black helmet and placed it on the motorcycle seat. The wind caught the fringe of her short black trench coat and whipped it around wildly. Arys clutched the front of her coat to her chest with one hand and pushed back her black hair with the other. 

"So this is the Cinq Kingdom's Institution," She muttered. 

The Institution was white, so white it was almost blinding. Arys had to admit that the building was beautiful. Instead of blotting out the landscape, the building seemed to belong in the landscape. There were trees, flowers, and bushes everywhere. A huge tower reached for the sky while massive stone steps led down to the ground. On those steps stood a woman in uniform. Lucrezia Noin. Relena's personal bodyguard. Arys remembered the profile on her. She had been impressed by Noin's record. Graduated second highest in her class. 

Noin approached Arys and smiled. "Welcome to the Cinq Kingdom, Miss Arys Walker." 

"I am glad to be here." Arys bowed slightly. 

"Relena meets all new students as soon as possible. It just so happens that she can see you right now." 

"It would be an honor." Arys' responses were automatic. It left her free to observe her surroundings. 

"Follow me." 

Arys kept her eyes on the polished white stone beneath her feet, but she could feel the gaze of someone standing at one of the many windows above her. She did not search for the observer. She would meet him sooner or later. It felt wrong to leave herself vulnerable in such a way, but she knew she was safe here... for now. 

* * *

"What are you looking at, Heero?" Quatre eyed his friend curiously. 

Heero did not move from his position at the window. "A new student has arrived. A girl." 

Quatre laughed. "I'm not surprised. All the students here are girls." 

"She seems different." 

Quatre put down his book and came to Heero's side. "How so?" Then he saw the motorcycle. "Oh, I see." 

Heero studied the motorcycle but it did not reveal any secrets about its owner. "She was wearing a short black trench coat." 

"American?" Quatre ventured a guess. 

Heero nodded. "More than likely." Heero stepped back from the window. "She also kept her head down as she walked." 

Quatre finished the observation. "As if she knew she were being watched." 

"Exactly. I don't think she's here just as a student." 

Quatre returned to the couch and leaned against one of its arms. "I'm willing to give her the benefit of a doubt." 

Heero's reply was short, as it usually was. "I'm not." 

* * *

Arys lifted her head once she was inside the building. She had to play the part of a high-class girl, even though she was not one. Too bad the sim hadn't taught her how to act around rich people. It seemed that they walked through dozens of hallways and up ten stairwells before finally reaching Relena's office. Noin stopped before a set of double doors that looked like all the others. 

"Wait here please." Noin disappeared into the office. 

Arys tapped her transmitter. 

_Silverwind, I need a map of this place. Right now, I can only give you the path up to Relena's office. The rest I'll get later._

_Understood._

_If you can find anything on this place, get it to me. I won't have to work as hard._

_Understood._

Arys released the transmitter. She waited patiently for Noin to come back and fetch her. 

* * *

"Class, I'd like you to meet a new student who has just arrived." Relena motioned Arys into the room and to her side. "Please introduce yourself." 

Arys held back the urge to stand at ease and left her arms hanging at her sides. "My name is Arys Walker." 

The class regarded her with curiosity. Arys sensed open hostility from one girl though. Dorothy Catalonia. Arys' steel-gray eyes narrowed. Dorothy was related to Duke Dermail, the leader of the Romefeller Foundation. Dorothy was Oz. That made her an enemy. Arys decided to deal with her later. She continued scanning the room. She spotted the two Gundam pilots right away. They were the only boys in the entire room. Heero sat with his arms crossed over his chest and downcast eyes. In spite of his attempt to look bored, Arys knew that he was watching her intently. Quatre's welcome showed in his blue eyes and his wide smile. He greeted her with a nod. 

"Arys has come here from Antarctica. Please make her feel welcome. She represents a research outpost located there." Relena turned to Arys. "Take a seat and we'll begin." 

Arys sat down at an empty desk in the back row. She needed a good place to observe people and the back row was the best spot. Unfortunately, her desk was right next to Heero's. She decided against greeting him. 

"Welcome, Arys Walker." 

His voice startled her. She turned to look at him and saw that his eyes were the deepest blue she had ever seen. There had been no emotion in his voice, but Arys could see the veiled warning in his eyes. 

"Thanks," Arys said. She glanced down at her desk. 

_Don't worry, Heero Yuy. I'm on your side, but you'll just have to find that out for yourself._

* * *

The silent bell in Arys' mind went off at twelve midnight. Arys quietly slid out of bed. She had slept in her dark gray jumpsuit so that she would not have the hassle of putting it on in the dark. She threw on her black trench coat, patted the holstered gun underneath the front flap, and headed toward the window. 

The ground was three stories down. Arys would have no problem climbing down without safety equipment. She opened the window and climbed out onto the sill. The window screen lay under her bed, removed and placed there earlier in the day. 

Arys closed the window behind her and carefully made her way down the wall. She hit the ground running and made for the woods, where she had hidden her motorcycle. 

* * *

Heero sat at his laptop computer, searching for information on Arys Walker. There was very little about her on the general net, but Heero could hack his way to more classified information. 

"Antarctica - bases." 

Two showed up on the screen. Siberia Base, where Heero had fought Zechs, and Antarctic Outpost. On a hunch, Heero punched in the codes for access to the Antarctic Outpost computer system. 

The screen flashed. [Security clearance accepted.] 

"Profile on Arys Walker." Heero's hands flew over the keyboard. 

Heero read the document that came up aloud. The further he read, the more surprised he became. 

______________ 

Pilot: Arys Walker 

Age: 15 

Hair Color: Black 

Eye Color: Gray 

DOB: Unknown 

Origin: Unknown 

Nationality: American 

Affiliation: None 

Vehicle: The Gundam Silverwind 

Background: Pilot has completely mastered the Zero System and thinks as one with her Gundam during battle. In a simulation, the pilot is virtually unstoppable and remains undefeated. 

______________ 

Heero touched the picture of Arys on the screen. 

"Hmm... So the mysterious Arys Walker is a Gundam pilot." Heero saved the data and began typing again. 

The sound of footsteps in the room above him stopped his search. He knew Arys had that room. Her movements were very quiet. They would not disturb anyone who was in a deep asleep. But Heero was wide-awake. He frowned. What was Arys doing? Her steps went to the window. Heero barely caught the sound of the window opening and then closing. She was climbing down the wall. Heero stayed where he was until he was sure she had reached the level below his window. He ran to the window in time to see Arys step onto the ground and run for the woods. Before she was halfway there, Heero was out the door. 

Heero managed to hot-wire a car in the garage and get out onto the road just as Arys peeled out from the woods in a puff of dust and leaves. He rolled the driver's side window down and followed far behind, using only the sound of the motorcycle to guide him. 

When he heard her stop, he turned off the ignition and got out of the car. He would track her down on foot from here. 

* * *

Arys nervously tapped the keyboard on the temporary computer console she had set up near Silverwind. She was sweating in spite of the chill night air. 

_I need to fight. Even if it isn't real._

_Someone is here._

The Gundam's message invaded her whirling thoughts and dispelled them into a cloud of dust. Arys touched her transmitter. 

_Where?_

_3 o' clock. Edge of the clearing. _Arys pulled out a pistol and pointed it in that direction. 

_Give me some help, Silverwind._

Instantly, Arys was scanning the woods for thermal radiation. She found a human signature and pointed her gun at it. 

"Show yourself! Now!" 

Heero stepped out of the woods with his hands raised. 

_Switch to human sight._

The green faded from Arys' vision. Her dark eyes narrowed and she tightened her grip on the pistol. 

"Heero Yuy. I should have known. You shouldn't have come." 

Heero ignored the gun in her hand. His eyes were on the Gundam behind her. "You are a Gundam pilot." 

Arys' hand never wavered. If he thought small talk would lower her guard, he was wrong. 

"Yes. As are you." 

Heero reached into a pocket and pulled out a disk. He tossed it to her. She caught it with her free hand. 

"Look at it." 

Arys slipped the disk into the computer's input slot. Her profile scrolled down the console screen. She jerked the disk out of the slot and threw it on the ground. Calmly, she took aim with her pistol and shot it in half. She aimed her gun at Heero again, but he was not there. She could have slapped herself. He had distracted her! The oldest trick in the... 

A shadow leapt at her from the side and tackled her to the ground. She quickly holstered her gun and tried to push Heero off her. But he was too strong. Arys found herself with her face in the dirt and her hands pinned behind her back. She felt cold steel prod the back of her head. 

"Why are you here?" 

Arys spit out the dirt in her mouth. "You don't need to know." 

The barrel of the gun dug in deeper. "I asked, 'Why are you here?'" 

"And I said, 'You don't need to know.'" 

Heero was beginning to lose patience with this girl. He jiggled the gun. "You have until three. One..." 

"Silverwind! Help!" 

"What?" Heero said. 

The Gundam looming above them came to life. Its eyes flashed silver as it lowered a Vulcan cannon straight at them. Bullets sprayed the ground around Arys, and Heero leapt off her back to avoid getting shot. He hit the ground in a roll and bounced back to his feet. The hailstorm stopped and Arys rolled to one knee. She raised her pistol and aimed it at Heero's chest just as he regained his footing and brought his weapon around to bear on her head. Both of them had their fingers poised over the triggers. For a long moment, they glared at each other. 

_Arys._

"What is it, Silverwind?" She asked shortly, still aiming her gun at Heero. 

Heero could not contain his surprise at seeing this girl talk to her Gundam. 

_He is not here to kill you._

"Then, what do you call what he just did?" Arys was trembling. "It was real, Silverwind. Real!" 

_He is not an enemy. He could have killed you before he even revealed himself, but he did not._

Arys slowly lowered her gun. Heero holstered his. Arys stood up and moved forward until she was barely three inches in front of his face. 

"My Gundam is the only thing I trust in this world. It trusts you. That means I must trust you." She handed him her pistol and stepped back with her hands raised. "Do what you must." 

Heero fingered the pistol, unsure of what it was she was telling him. He tossed the gun in the air and caught it barrel-first. He held it toward her. "Take it. I won't report you." 

Arys took the pistol and placed it in its holster. "Thank you." 

She went back to her console. "By the way, I'm not here to hurt Relena. I'm here to help you, Quatre, and Noin protect her." 

_Please leave, Heero._

"I'm not ready to leave yet." 

Arys looked up to see that Heero had come over to the console. His blue eyes were unreadable. 

"The profile wasn't enough." Arys pushed a button on her console. 

"No. It said nothing about how you were trained or how you can communicate with your Gundam using your thoughts." 

So he had noticed. Sharp. Very sharp. She found herself beginning to respect him. 

"You want to know everything, don't you, Heero?" Arys asked. "I like that. Information is power no matter how insignificant that information is." 

"Then, we should get along just fine," Heero said. 

Arys glanced at him. "Perhaps. Come, the best way for me to explain is for you to experience a sim." 

"A sim?" Heero raised an eyebrow at her in confusion. 

Arys led him to the front of her Gundam. She grabbed the cable that hauled a pilot up to the cockpit and handed it to Heero. "I've been living in a virtual world for the past five years. A sim isn't totally like what I've experienced, but you'll get a taste." 

"But I've used a sim before." 

"Not like this. This sim involves total virtual immersion. It's like going to sleep." She motioned for Heero to activate the line. "Silverwind will hook you up. I'll stay down here." 

"Are you sure this is safe?" 

"I've got too many flags set up for you to hurt anything, and the Zero System can only be accessed by my touch. Enjoy." 

Heero tapped the switch on the haul line. Arys leaned on her console and watched him get into the cockpit. She touched her transmitter. 

_Silverwind, give him a level 8. He's a good pilot and deserves a challenge._

_Understood._

* * *

"Heero?" 

A voice drifted into his mind. Relena? No, this voice was different. It had more of an American lilt to it, like Duo's voice. Arys. Heero opened his eyes to see Arys peering into the cockpit. She had an amused look on her face. 

"Was the sim so boring it made you fall asleep?" 

"How long?" He asked as he stood up. 

"About an hour. The sim actually lasted thirty minutes." Arys patted the doorjamb. "I thought I'd let you sleep." 

Heero came out onto the cockpit door. Arys followed him. She now looked uncertain. "What was it like for you?" 

Heero gazed up at the night sky. "Like dreaming." 

Arys nodded. "Imagine dreaming like that for five years. That's what I went through. Everyday I had a battle. They were all different, but the mission was always the same: destroy Oz. I never got tired of it, though. Strange, isn't it? I probably used to hate fighting five years ago. But now, I live for it." Her voice was wistful. 

"You live to fight. That is the way of all the Gundam pilots." 

Arys sat down on the door and dangled her feet over the edge. For just a moment, she felt like a little girl. Then, the feeling passed. "During those five years, I merged with Silverwind. That's why I can 'think' orders to it. After the merge, handling the Zero System was no trouble at all." 

"The perfect Gundam pilot." Heero sat down next to her. 

"Far from it, Heero. Just because I can handle the Zero System doesn't mean I'm a perfect pilot." Arys leaned back so that she could look at the stars. "You, on the other hand, very nearly beat me on that sim. I'm impressed. That was your first try. No wonder they call you the Perfect Soldier. I've done it at least twenty times, until I got it perfect." 

They were both silent for a few minutes, staring at the stars. Arys abruptly rolled to her feet and reached for the gently swinging haul line. 

"Enough information for you, Heero?" Her manner changed from the insecure teenager to the professional soldier within seconds. 

Heero stood to his feet. 

"Yes, for now." 

Heero jumped off the cockpit door. The haul line lowered him slowly to the ground. He turned around to see the cockpit door closing behind Arys. She was obviously going to spend the night, what was left of it, in her Gundam. As he made his way to the car, Heero realized that Arys' past was similar to his. No parents, family, close friends. And no childhood. Heero slid behind the wheel and turned on the ignition. For a few seconds, he just sat there and let the engine run. There was only one difference between his and Arys' training. Arys knew who the enemy was; Heero sometimes wondered if he did. 

* * *

Arys arrived at the rec center the next morning in time to see Heero put his sword through Dorothy's faceplate. 

She tapped Quatre on the shoulder. He turned and grinned at her. 

"Hi, Arys." 

Arys motioned to the duel. "What happened?" 

"Dorothy challenged Heero. Of course, Heero won. He always does." 

Arys muttered, "We'll see about that." She stalked forward. 

"I'm having a hard time following you. There must be two other guys named Heero Yuy besides myself," Heero told Dorothy before he walked away. 

Arys stepped in front of him. "Want to show Miss Catalonia a real swordfight, Heero?" 

"Huh?" Heero said. 

Arys crossed her arms over her chest. "No safety equipment." 

At that statement, Heero glanced up from the ground to look Arys in the eye. He saw the challenge in her eyes, but it was different from what he had seen in Dorothy's eyes. Arys wasn't baiting him, trying to make him angry. 

Heero shrugged. "Why not?" 

* * *

Arys stood facing Heero in the middle of the room. A large crowd had gathered around them. 

_I hope they aren't looking for blood. They won't be seeing any._ Arys mocked them in her mind. _Total pacifists, my foot._

Heero was dressed in his normal outfit, black shorts and a green tank top. Arys wore her staple gray jumpsuit. She hefted the sword in her hand and tested its weight. 

Heero unexpectedly lunged forward, but Arys parried the move aside and hopped backwards. She then went on the offense, wanting to get a feel for Heero's style so that she could anticipate his moves. Heero blocked her thrusts easily. Arys stopped, stepped back, and bowed slightly, giving Heero an opening and the chance to study her style. 

He took the offer, attacking with lightning-quick blows. Arys dodged them easily. She had known exactly where he would aim. 

Then,the two fell to an all-out battle. The sound of their striking swords formed the perfect accompaniment as they danced around the room in a deadly waltz. One false move and one of them could die. 

Quatre moved closer for a better view. They were so evenly matched it was incredible. Quatre made a mental note to duel with Arys while he was here. He knew Heero's moves too well and needed someone new to spar with. He stepped aside with the rest of the crowd as the two teens fought their way to the wall. 

* * *

Arys knew exactly what Heero was trying to do. She knew the wall was a few feet behind her, and she was going to use it. 

Heero jumped forward, trying to find a hole in Arys' defense. Arys, for a moment, left her face unguarded, and Heero jabbed his sword toward that area. Arys leaped back and hit the wall, hard. The crowd winced, but Arys did not notice what should have been a painful jolt. 

All Arys could see was Heero's sword, heading straight for her face. It was an underhanded move in a gentleman's swordfight, but Arys knew there was nothing gentlemanly about this fight at all. She swiftly raised her sword and used it to nudge Heero's sword to the side of her head. It rammed harmlessly into the wall, and the sword, with Heero's strength behind it, broke. The metal pieces fell to the floor in a tinkling rain. 

Arys slowly lowered her sword from in front of her face. She slid down the wall until she sat against it, exhausted. Heero's expression was impassive. He looked down at her and dropped what remained of his sword on the floor. He offered a hand to her. Arys wiped a hand across her forehead as she took his hand and staggered to her feet. 

"Stalemate." 

Heero shook his head. "No stalemate. You won." He let go of her hand and stepped back. 

Arys refused to accept the win. She still owed him for that flying tackle last night and she wanted to come up with something better than a swordfight. "Your sword broke. Stalemate." 

Heero actually let out a hint of his buried sense of humor. "My sword always breaks." 

Arys tossed him her sword. "Then, I suggest you get a better sword." She walked away, stopping before a seething Dorothy Catalonia. "That, Miss Catalonia, is a real swordfight." She strode out of the room. Quatre followed her. 

"Arys! Where are you going?" 

* * *

Heero watched Arys leave the room. He had to admit the girl was good. He wondered why she had refused the win. Then he remembered the night before and how he had jumped her. 

"Uh oh," He muttered. 

It dawned on him that there were still people standing around gawking at him. Arys had the right idea. He was about to leave the room when someone called his name. 

"Heero!" Relena pushed her way through the crowd. "What do you think you're doing?" She ran up to him and took his arm. 

Heero shrugged. "Recovering from a swordfight." 


	3. Chapter 2

Standard Disclaimer #2: I wish I owned Gundam Wing cuz if I did I'd find another girl for Heero, but I don't so I'll have to live with Relena. Also, I'd have Dorothy get a makeover or something (and I don't mean just in looks). Quatre deserves someone nice! I plan on buying some GW merchandise soon so the GW franchise will be gaining money not losing money because of me. And who do I think shouldn't change a bit? Lucrezia Noin! She needs a Gundam, the poor girl. Then, she could probably beat Wufei.

So after that, um, interesting disclaimer, on with the show!

Circle of the Earth

by Ceres Sky

Chapter 2 

Arys sat in the music room and listened to Quatre play the violin. It had been a long time since she had heard music. She closed her eyes and leaned back against the pillows on the couch. Quatre soon finished his song with a flourish.

Arys sighed. "That was beautiful, Quatre. I wish I could play like that."

Quatre beamed. "Come on, Arys." He held the violin out to her. "We can have our first lesson."

Arys wanted to laugh, but she stood up and took the violin from him. Quatre stepped close behind her and positioned the instrument for her. Then, he placed the bow in her hand and helped her draw it across the strings. A loud squeak was all that came out. Arys flushed. Quatre patted her hand.

"That's the wrong way to play the violin. I needed to show that to you first. Here's how to do it." Quatre placed her bow across one string. "Now draw it across that string."

Arys slowly did so, and an audible note actually sounded. Quatre smiled.

"Very good!" He was obviously pleased. "You'll be a great violinist in no time!"

Arys knew he was teasing her and it was an unfamiliar yet pleasant feeling. Quatre was one of the nicest boys she had ever met. Heero could take some lessons on kindness from Quatre. 

_But then, he wouldn't be Heero._

Arys turned to find Quatre studying her thoughtfully. She handed Quatre the violin and bow.

"Thank you, Quatre. It was very kind of you..."

Quatre waved her off with the bow. "It was my pleasure." He placed the violin back in the instrument cabinet. Arys went and gazed out the window. She could see Quatre come up behind her in the reflection in the glass. He was watching her in the glass too and his expression was serious. 

"Arys, you're a Gundam pilot, aren't you?"

Arys looked down at her shoes. How had he known?

He put a friendly hand on her shoulder. "I see a lot of Heero in you. Of course, you're not as distant as he is." He chuckled. "Anyone who's even a little bit like Heero has to be a Gundam pilot."

"You're very perceptive, Quatre." Arys tilted her head up to see Quatre give her a gentle smile. "And you're also very kind. Heero literally had to drag the information from me."

"We all have our own ways of doing things, Arys." Quatre gestured out the window. "It's a beautiful day. Would you like to go for a walk in the garden?"

Arys flushed. She did not know how to react to Quatre's gentlemanly manners.

"Come on. I won't bite." Quatre offered her his arm.

Arys accepted it and gave Quatre one of her rare smiles. "I... I'd love to."

They were about to leave the room when Heero suddenly appeared in the doorway. His face was expressionless. 

"We need to talk."

___________________

Arys frowned darkly. "So the Romefeller Foundation is trying to use the Treize faction as an excuse to attack the Cinq Kingdom. Typical Oz strategy."

The three Gundam pilots sat in Heero's quarters. Heero had a projector running that showed the locations of the Treize faction and the Oz troops.

"Relena's accepted the Treize faction as refugees, but that won't stop Romefeller. We need to use our Gundams to protect the Treize faction."

Quatre shook his head. "I don't have mine, remember?"

"Noin has a few Taurus suits hidden away." Heero's gaze landed on Arys. "We'll meet at the clearing."

Arys nodded.

"Quatre, go talk to Noin. She'll want your help."

"What if Relena refuses to fight back?" Quatre stood to his feet.

"She has no choice. If she doesn't fight back, the Treize faction will be destroyed and Romefeller will have a clear path to the city."

Arys nodded grimly. "And that will be Romefeller's first step toward conquering Earth."

____________________

Arys climbed down from the leg of her prostrate Gundam. She landed easily in front of Heero.

"What's the plan?" She asked as she tossed a screwdriver into a toolbox sitting on the ground a few feet away.

"I'm going to help the Treize faction. They won't accept my plan right away since they'll see me as a kid, but they're probably desperate enough right now to try anything."

Arys eyed the Zero-One crouched on one knee behind Heero. "When they realize that you're a Gundam pilot, they'll follow."

"I need you to come in when the battle starts."

"Sounds easy enough." Arys pulled some fingerless gloves from one of her jumpsuit's pockets. She slowly put them on. "What's the signal?"

"Tune your radio to this frequency." Heero handed her a piece of paper. "I'll say, 'Beginning the sim.'"

Arys crossed her arms over her chest and nodded. "I'll be ready."

"Good." Heero walked away and climbed up into his Gundam. 

Arys shaded her eyes with one hand as the Gundam's engines fired up. The Zero-One shot into the air and transformed into fighter mode. With a roar, it blasted away over Arys' head. The resulting wind nearly knocked Arys off her feet.

"Heero Yuy. You do know how to make an exit."

Arys shook her head as she climbed back into her Gundam to wait for his call.

_____________________

Quatre stood next to Noin in a secret chamber below the Institution. He was disappointed that he did not have Sandrock with him. 

Noin looked even more disappointed than Quatre did as she surveyed the mobile suits assembled in front of her. "We don't have nearly enough mobile suits or soldiers to pilot them."

Quatre scanned the shock white Taurus suits. "These things serve their purpose, but to tell you the truth, Miss Noin, I never really liked them." 

"Speak for yourself, Quatre." Noin walked over to a Taurus and placed her hand on it. "You have Sandrock to fight with." 

Quatre walked over to join her in front of the huge mobile suit. He had a confused look on his face as he turned to talk to her. "You're right about that, but I do have one question. How are we going to use these space mobile suits on land?" 

Noin laughed as she stepped back from the suit. "Ever heard of modifications, Gundam pilot?"

"That would take some heavy changes to these things." Quatre glanced at his watch. "Heero's probably on his way to the Treize faction's camp now.

"Do you think we should head out now?"

Quatre put his hand up in a gesture of patience. "Give Heero some time. It will take him a while to verbalize his feelings."

A smile spread across Noin's face. "Feelings, Quatre? You know as well as I do that that kid isn't the most sensitive guy on the planet." 

Quatre mirrored Noin's smile and began to walk off. "We'd better get something to eat before we go."

Noin followed Quatre out of the chamber while chuckling a bit. From the blackness of the exit tunnel laughter echoed out.

__________________

Heero stalked into the Treize faction commanding officer's tent. He had gotten exactly the response he had expected.

"It's a kid!"

Sometimes, Heero found it so tiring. People were always underestimating him because of his age and his height. It usually worked to his advantage though. He supposed he could be thankful for that. He walked right up to the commanding officer.

"I have a plan."

"Sir, we don't have to listen..." The soldier stopped when Heero glared at him, his blue eyes cold.

"If you want to die, you can stay here. If you want to fight, come with me." He turned on his heel and strode out of the tent, ignoring the stares of the soldiers.

As soon as Heero was out of earshot, the soldier faced his commanding officer again. "Sir, we don't have to listen..."

This time the officer cut him off with a command. "Two or three of you come with me. The rest go with him."

"But, sir..."

"Soldier, I don't think you realize who that kid was. He pilots the Zero-One." The commanding officer gave him a sharp glance.

"You mean that kid's a Gundam pilot?" The soldier was astounded.

______________

Arys finally heard the sound of an incoming transmission.

"Beginning the sim."

Arys powered up her Gundam. She reached over to press the button that would activate the Zero system, but she hesitated. She had heard about what the Zero system did to pilots. Would it do the same to her? She frowned and slammed her hand down on the button.

"I won't go insane." Arys pulled on her helmet. "This battle is too important to wonder about my own safety."

Arys took a deep breath. With a thought, she had Silverwind change to its fighter mode. Then, she yanked the controls and her Gundam shot up and over the trees, heading for the distant battleground.

_________________

"Dorothy?" Relena bolted out the front door of the institution to see the blonde girl waving from her car.

"Miss Relena! Hurry or we'll miss the fight!"

Relena ran down the steps and jumped into Dorothy's gold car. 

Soon they were speeding toward the distant flashes of light.

________________

Heero spotted the Silverwind before his scopes even registered that it was there.

"Good. She's here." Heero then turned around to face three mobile dolls that had come up behind him. 

He quickly dispatched them with three slashes from his beam saber. The mobile dolls fell away, each one cleaved in half. Their surfaces sparked with electricity before exploding in a cloud of fire. Heero turned away from the defeated mobile dolls to see a plane heading for the city. 

"Romefeller." Heero followed it. "Goodbye." He pointed his machine cannons at the plane and fired. 

The bullets opened a hole in the side of the plane from which flame spilled out in clouds. He happened to look down and saw that the dying plane was heading straight for a bridge with a lone gold car driving across it. Instinctively, Heero lowered his buster rifle and fired a shot at the plane. The energy beam was strong enough to knock the plane aside so that it crashed into the river where it erupted into a pillar of black smoke.

Heero glanced back at the now stopped car to see Relena get out of it. What was she doing here? The girl had a knack for getting herself into trouble.

Heero whirled away from the bridge to take on two mobile dolls bearing down on him. 

"Is this the best you can do, Romefeller?" Heero said to no one in particular as he switched back to his beam saber. He sliced through the two mobile dolls as if they were made of butter. 

"It isn't good enough."

__________________

Relena gasped when she saw two mobile dolls land right beside the car. She jumped into the car and tried to wake Dorothy who had been knocked unconscious from their dangerous skid. 

"Dorothy!" Relena shook the girl frantically.

The girl remained still, her head pillowed on the steering wheel.

Relena got back out of the car and stood up. She clenched her fists and waited to die.

A flash of blue and silver streaked by and the two mobile dolls fell backwards, smoking and in two pieces. They exploded before they even hit the ground.

"What was that?" Relena shaded her eyes.

The flash made a U-turn and came back. It hovered above her. 

"A... a Gundam!" Relena put a hand over her mouth in shock. She had never seen it before, and Heero's was a few kilometers away battling with yet more mobile dolls.

Two white Taurus suits in fighter mode flew over her head, heading for Heero's area.

The blue and silver Gundam followed them.

____________________

Several minutes later, Relena stood facing her makeshift army. Arys stood at ease beside Heero. Her dark eyes were impassive, but her mind was whirling with what she had just experienced. A real battle. Not a sim. It had been invigorating. She shivered slightly as a passing gust caught her hair and blew it around her face.

"I take full responsibility," Noin was saying.

Heero stepped forward, trying to make a confused Relena understand. "What Miss Noin is trying to say is that..."

Arys smiled to herself as Heero continued his speech. He was not just the Perfect Soldier. He was a politician. Arys noticed Dorothy

moving around in her car. So the girl was finally awake? Arys had the feeling Dorothy had been faking it. What had Relena and Dorothy been doing out here in the first place?

Arys did not trust Dorothy. She came from the Romefeller Foundation. She was Oz. And Oz was her enemy.

"Let's go, Arys." Heero's words snapped Arys out of her thoughts. He took her arm and led her to where their Gundams were standing.

She gave him a surprised glance.

"Where are you going, Heero?" Relena asked, almost pleaded.

"I've repaid you for your help in the search for Trowa. I am no longer needed here."

Arys glared at him, but he ignored her and just gripped her arm tighter.

Relena sighed and stepped forward. "Heero, I give permission for you and Noin to do whatever you see fit to protect this country."

Arys jerked her arm away from Heero's grasp. Then, she grabbed his hand and dragged him back to the group. While Relena and Noin talked, Arys got in Heero's face.

"We're not leaving."

Heero, shocked at seeing Arys angry, rubbed the back of his neck nervously. He tried an excuse. "I was kidding."

Arys gave him a fake saccharine smile. She reached up and patted his cheek playfully. "Nice try." Arys winked at him. "We all know that Heero Yuy never kids."

"Uh..." Heero had no response to that one.

_______________

In her car, Dorothy smiled. "Very good, Miss Relena. You didn't let the Gundam pilot get the upper hand. I'm impressed. Perhaps we'll have a war after all."

The anticipation made Dorothy tremble with delight.


	4. Chapter 3

Standard Disclaimer #3: I don't own Gundam Wing just like I don't own Star Trek, Star Wars, or Pokemon. No money has been made in writing this story. I don't think I'd make anything even if I did try to sell it!

****

Circle of the Earth

by Ceres Sky

Chapter 3

"I can't believe that we have three Gundam pilots in the same place at the same time. I've heard it's a rarity." Noin fiddled with something on a console in the Institution's hidden mobile suit storage area.

Quatre, Heero, and Arys stood nearby, wondering why Noin had brought them down here. Arys was looking at the Taurus suits with interest, Quatre was watching Noin, and Heero stood in his usual stance, head down, eyes shadowed. 

Arys glanced at Noin. "You forget, Noin. I'm not with them."

Arys stepped away from the two boys, but Heero reached out for her shoulder and pulled her back next to him. She sulked silently.

"You are now," Heero said, his eyes still half-closed. He kept his hand on her shoulder, in case she tried to run off again. He had an idea what Noin was going to do, and he suspected Arys did too.

Noin clapped her hands together once. "All right, the simulator's ready. Get in, Arys."

Arys stepped back. "I..." She stammered slightly. 

Heero looked slightly concerned when he felt Arys trembling underneath his hand. "What is it?"

"This is a sim with the Zero System activated, right?" Arys tried her best to hide her nervousness by clenching her fists.

Noin nodded.

"I've never tried a sim with it activated. I've only used it in the virtual world and the last battle." Arys swallowed. "Are you sure I'll be sane when I get out?"

Heero squeezed her shoulder and then let his arm fall back to his side. "I'll monitor you. At the first sign of trouble, I'll come up there and get you myself."

Arys took a deep breath. "All right." She regained her composure and looked up at her Gundam fondly. "It's showtime, Silverwind."

_________________

Noin peered over Heero's shoulder at the console screen. They could see only Arys' radar screen. Green dots flew all over the gridfield.

"Look at that! She's incredible!"

As soon as a new enemy appeared on the radar, it disappeared, signaling a kill. Once in a while, a whole area of the screen would flicker and then clear out. 

Quatre pointed to Arys' brain wave pattern. "She's thinking in perfect sync with her Gundam. There's no lag time." The pattern suddenly leveled out. "What happened?"

Heero pushed a button on his console. "She just activated the Zero System. She no longer has to think; she reacts." He looked at the sim clock. "She has sixty seconds left." 

They looked back at the console screen only to find that it was devoid of enemy green dots. However, the kill count was still rising.

"I don't understand." Quatre ran a hand through his blonde hair.

Heero frowned. "I don't either."

Noin stared at the screen. "She must be moving so fast that her radar doesn't have time to register the enemies around her. She's killing the enemy before they even show up on her radar. Look at her damage. She's only gotten hit three times."

The sim clock reached zero and beeped loudly, startling Noin and Quatre. Heero barely cringed as he leaned back and waited for the results to show up. Soon, Arys' results scrolled down the screen.

"Every single one. She destroyed every single enemy." Quatre was amazed.

"Well, not every enemy. One managed to get away." Noin pointed to the kill count versus number of enemies statistic. 

Arys' response time showed up as zero. Apparently, the computer hadn't known what to do with the numbers it had been fed.

"So she can handle the Zero System," Heero said.

Noin nodded. "I've always wondered how it worked. Now, I know."

____________________

Arys sat in the cockpit, waiting for the adrenaline rush to recede. She ducked her head, trying to sort through the data streaming through her mind. She needed to organize her thoughts into the real and the not real.

"This is real," Arys whispered. "This world is what is real."

Arys raised her head to see that the battle was replaying on the screen in front of her. Her eyes caught something in the corner. A transport. She watched as it blew up. Arys frowned.

_Freeze frame._

The explosion froze. 

_Rewind three seconds._

The video rewound to the moment just before the transport exploded. A few kilometers behind the transport was a Gundam. It had a shoulder cannon pointed at the transport; the cannon looked just like the Shiv rifle Silverwind carried. 

_Magnify._

The image zoomed in on the Gundam. It was blue and silver. Arys mentally checked off the weapons it carried: Vulcan cannon, Double beam sabers, and Shiv rifle. It did not just look like Silverwind; it was Silverwind.

"No," Arys whispered. She tapped the console and got the kill count. She had missed one enemy. That enemy was the very Gundam she was looking at right now. 

"This isn't happening!" Arys slammed her hand down on the radar screen. "It wasn't real!" She tipped her head back against the headrest. "It wasn't real..." Her voice trailed off as she realized that it had, in fact, been real.

___________________

"What is Arys doing?" Heero tapped the console, trying to gain control back, but Arys had apparently taken over the system.

The console screen came to life unexpectedly. They saw everything Arys was seeing in her Gundam. The transport, the explosion, and what was behind the transport.

"It's the Silverwind!" Quatre exclaimed.

"What?" Noin leaned down to get a closer look at the screen. "It can't be!"

Heero stared at the screen for a few moments. He leaped out of his seat and sprinted for Arys' Gundam.

___________________

Arys was sitting in the cockpit, her head buried in her hands. She did not look up when Heero opened the cockpit door. He stepped into the cockpit and crouched down in front of Arys.

After a few moments of silence, she looked up.

"It could not have been you," Heero said. "Someone would have noticed it."

Arys shook her head. "It was." She sighed. "Even I did not notice it in the simulation until afterwards. Most of my missions in the virtual world were hit-and-fade. Once I completed the mission, I left the battle. I remember this battle too. It was actually a little skirmish between the United Earth Sphere Alliance and the L1 colony cluster. Some Oz mobile suits attacking helpless transports heading for Earth."

Heero looked at her, his mind working quickly.

"But I don't understand..." Arys' eyes filled with pain. "In that battle, I was fighting mobile suits from Oz, not helpless transports supposed to be protected by... me. And I couldn't have been there, but somehow..." She buried her head back in her hands. "What's going on?"

Heero finally understood. "They tricked you, Arys. You were never in a simulator. You've been fighting real battles for the past five years, but the enemy was different from what you believed. You thought you were fighting against Oz when in fact, you were fighting for them."

Arys raised her head, her eyes staring unseeing past Heero and out the door. She could see Quatre and Noin standing around the console. Both were looking up at the cockpit with concern. "I don't know who the enemy is anymore. Is it Oz? Is it the Cinq Kingdom?" Her gaze settled on Heero. "Is it you?" 

Heero reached out and took her hands. "I'm not the enemy, Arys. The Cinq Kingdom is not your enemy." His eyes narrowed. "I think Oz is your enemy. They did this to you."

"Yes," Arys whispered. "Oz is the enemy. Just as they have always been."

"You need to get out of this Gundam." Heero was about to walk her out onto the cockpit door when he felt Arys collapse behind him.

Thinking she had fainted, he whirled around and caught her in his arms. He looked down into her face to find her staring up at him, fully conscious. She gave him a wry smile.

"My legs fell asleep. If I keep moving, they'll wake up." 

Heero nodded and placed Arys' arm around his shoulders. Then, he put his arm around her waist and they walked out of the Gundam together.

___________________

Heero hacked his way into the L1 colony cluster's computer network. Once again, he was looking for information on Arys Walker. 

"Where to start." Heero scanned the choices offered him. The news archive caught his eye. Using Arys Walker as his search word, he found three articles about her. 

"Ten-year-old girl disappears."

Heero clicked on the headline and the article flashed onto the screen along with a picture of a young Arys. She was smiling brightly at the camera. Heero studied her face. He did not think he had ever seen Arys smile. The ten-year-old face was smooth and rounded and with the smile, it was beautiful. Heero sighed. The steel-gray eyes appeared older than her ten years though. There was a hint of some hidden pain in them. Heero recognized it. It was the pain of knowledge. Knowledge that a ten-year-old was not supposed to know. Now, Arys' face was all hard angles, still beautiful, but the beauty was distant and cold, like a diamond set in a museum case to be admired but never touched. Her eyes, however, were still the same.

Heero read part of the article aloud. "Arys Walker, a girl with an incredible affinity for machines and computers and a brilliant mind, has disappeared. She was last seen outside the Valhalla Tech School on Friday afternoon, talking with friends. That was the last time they would ever see her. Arys never returned home."

Heero stopped reading and saved the article. Arys was from the L1 colony cluster. That was his home as well. He wondered briefly if Dr. J knew anything about Arys. 

He clicked on the next article headline.

"Arys Walker believed dead."

Click. Save. Heero skipped to the last article.

"Girl executed by the United Earth Sphere Alliance."

Heero tapped the enter button. 

"The United Earth Sphere Alliance, in an act of ultimate cruelty, has executed Arys Walker, the ten-year-old girl kidnapped from the L1 colony a two months ago. The reason for the execution? The demands of the L1 colony cluster that she be allowed to come home. Arys Walker was used as an example by the United Earth Sphere Alliance to show that all resistance to their authority will be annihilated. And because of this, a little girl is dead. L1 will mourn her death..."

Heero saved the article and sat back in his chair. 

"So Arys was supposedly executed. I wonder how?"

He stood up and ejected the disk from the drive. He slipped it into a pocket and strode out of his room. 

A few minutes later, Heero stopped in front of Arys' door. He raised a hand to knock, but before he could do so, Arys' voice came through the door.

"Come in, Heero."

Heero walked in, not surprised that Arys had known he was there. He suspected that after what had happened to her in the sim she would put up a security alert device on her door. 

When he walked into the living area, Arys was sitting on her couch, furiously clicking some kind of remote at the wall. Pictures flashed by faster than Heero could see, but Arys was staring at the wall as if in a trance. She flung the remote to Heero, who caught it with one hand. The reel had stopped on a picture of a couple. The husband had blonde hair, the wife black hair like Arys, both were smiling as if they had everything in the world.

Arys motioned to the picture angrily.

"My parents." There was no emotion in her voice. "They look happy, don't they."

Heero stood where he was, still holding the remote. 

The anger drained from her face, replaced by a haunted look. She walked up to the wall and touched her parents' faces. She jerked back her hand. 

"So cold..." She whispered, gazing down at her hands. She clenched them into fists. 

Arys' stormy eyes came to rest on Heero and he almost looked away from the pain he saw there. "I... I killed them. In that battle I fought today, I watched their transport explode. They were coming to Earth with the ambassador from L1. They wanted to pick up my body for burial. But Oz sent me in Silverwind to stop them. I was eleven years old, Heero. Eleven! I didn't know what I was doing. I was only doing what those in authority told me to do, what the simulation told me to do. The dramatic irony! My parents come to Earth to pick up my corpse, and instead, I show up on their way there and blow them to kingdom come. All without my even realizing it. I'm a murderer, Heero. I've killed so many people." Arys' voice was filled with regret. "Oz will pay for what they've done to me." Her gray eyes flashed angrily. 

Arys walked up to Heero and took the remote from his hand. She savagely flicked a button and the picture vanished off the wall. She tossed the remote onto the coffee table.

"Why are you here, Heero?" She said, sitting down on the coffee table. Her face was now expressionless. 

"To give you this." Heero reached into his pocket and pulled out the disk. He handed it to her. "But apparently, you already know what's on it."

Arys placed the disk beside the remote on the table. "You're not the only one who can hack into a computer network, Heero. I set up a web spider to search the net for sites containing information about me. As it searched, the spider left behind flags. These flags tell me who accessed the site, what was searched for, and how much was saved to either a disk or the hard drive. And you're not the only one who's been checking me out." She grabbed the remote again and clicked it at the wall. An image of Dr. J appeared. "Your Dr. J has been searching the net for info on me too." 

"Hmm..." Heero grunted. 

Dr. J disappeared off the wall. "I have a feeling that there will be a mission waiting for you when you get back to your room." Arys glanced at him as she pushed herself to her feet. "You'd better go." 

"What?" 

"Goodbye, Heero." Arys went into her bedroom and slammed the door behind her. 

Heero stood in the middle of the room. "But, Arys..."

"Go, Heero!" Arys' voice, tinged with a hint of tears, drifted through the door. "Go see what your mission is! Then, you can come back and complete it if I'm still here for you to do so!" 

Heero made his way to the front door. He turned around. "Goodnight, Arys." He left.

Arys leaned against the bedroom door, trying to hold back the tears. Would he fulfill his mission? She sighed.

"Could he...?" Arys asked the empty bedroom in front of her. 

The empty room did not reply. Arys pulled a small duffel bag out from under the bed and placed it on the bed. Then, she began to methodically take clothes out from her dresser drawers and place them in the duffel. If he did decide to kill her, she would already be gone.

___________________

Heero walked into his room, banging the door closed behind him. He stalked over to his computer and sat down. With a groan, he put his head in his hands.

"Why would one of my missions get her so upset? Unless..." Heero looked up to see a red light blinking on his keyboard. He hit the space bar.

"Unless my mission is to kill her..." Heero read over the information that came up on his screen.

_Background: Subject: Arys Walker_

Kidnapped by Oz at the age of ten. How Oz learned of her unique ability with mobile suits is unknown. Supposedly, she was executed on Earth...

Heero skipped the next few lines until he came to something that he did not already know.

_Over the next five years, a mysterious Gundam affiliated with the United Earth Sphere Alliance would appear at various battles with the colonies and then promptly disappear into oblivion afterwards, leaving mass destruction in its wake. It is assumed that the very much alive Arys Walker is this Gundam's pilot. In A.C. 195, the 'Phantom Gundam,' as the colonies came to call it, stopped making appearances. Sources show that Oz has sent Arys Walker as well as Dorothy Catalonia to the Cinq Kingdom as foreign students. However, Arys Walker does not realize that she is an Oz agent. All data Arys stores in her Gundam's computer is dumped weekly to an Oz base in Antarctica. This leak in security makes Arys Walker a threat to the Cinq Kingdom._

_Background: Subject: Gundam X0_

Prototype of the Wing Gundam Zero. Stolen from the L1 colony and modified by Oz in A.C. 190. Equipped with a Zero System. Standard Weapons: Vulcan cannons, Shiv rifle, Double beam sabers. This Gundam is a dangerous weapon in the hands of an experienced pilot.

Mission: Arys Walker and her Gundam are Romefeller's property. They must be destroyed.

Heero stared at the screen, reading that last line over and over again.

"No," He whispered.

"I can't..." But he reached for the keyboard anyway. _I've never refused a mission, never failed a mission. I can't start now._

"Mission accepted."


	5. Chapter 4

Standard Disclaimer #4: Do I really have to put this disclaimer in again? I guess I really don't have to, but better to be safe than sorry. So you all can skip right down to the story if you want.... 

I don't own Gundam Wing and no money goes into my empty pocket because of this story. Oh, and if Arys sounds like anyone you know, then she probably needs some help cuz Arys isn't exactly stable right now.

****

Circle of the Earth

By Ceres Sky 

Chapter 4

Dorothy Catalonia brushed back a strand of long blonde hair. She smiled at the computer screen as she scanned the flags Arys had set up. Arys was indeed a computer genius. Only a fellow computer genius could have found those flags. Like Dorothy.

"So Arys Walker has found out what she is." She almost clapped her hands together. "Grandfather should know about this."

Dorothy's fingers flew over the keyboard as she contacted the Romefeller Foundation. Soon, her grandfather's face appeared on the screen. He had piercing eyes and an ever present power hungry look about him. Dorothy was a lot like him.

"Dorothy, this had better be important." Duke Dermail glowered at her. "We're preparing for Relena Peacecraft's visit in a few days."

Dorothy's expression was gleeful. She smiled roguishly at her grandfather. "Oh, this is definitely important, Grandfather dear. Arys Walker has discovered her identity."

Duke Dermail's brow furrowed. He stroked his chin thoughtfully. "That is indeed a problem. We need to find out how much she knows."

"That can be arranged." Dorothy leaned her chin against her hands. "She can come with Relena and me in two days."

"Excellent idea, Dorothy!" Duke Dermail gave his granddaughter a grateful smile. "Follow your plan and I'll have the interrogators take over when she gets here."

"Good-bye, Grandfather." Dorothy cut off the transmission.

She stared at the empty screen, her thoughts elsewhere. "Hmm... The interrogators. Won't that be fun, Arys?" She began to laugh, long and loud.

___________

Arys sprinted down the hall, her feet barely making a sound on the plush carpet. She would have climbed out her window again but there were still a few people milling about in the gardens. She would just have to pretend she was going out if she happened to run into someone.

Bang! Arys fell to the ground in an undignified heap of black leather. Her duffel bag flew out of her hands and landed against the wall. It slid down and hit the ground with a thud. Arys winced. She hoped her computer was not broken.

Arys looked up to see Dorothy walking over to her duffel. The blonde girl picked it up and held it out to Arys.

"Arys! Watch where you're going! You almost knocked me over!" 

Arys took the bag and muttered a superficial "I'm sorry."

Dorothy eyed the raven-haired girl warily. "Are you leaving without saying good-bye, Arys?" 

Arys did not reply. She was too busy pulling her computer out of her bag. She checked it over and found it still intact. All her clothes must have cushioned it from the bag's impact with the wall. She would see if it actually still worked later. If it was broken, it would be no problem for Arys to fix it. She put the computer back in the bag.

"No, I'm not leaving, Dorothy." Arys stood to her feet.

Dorothy's grin was razor-sharp. "Then, why do you have all your clothing in that bag?"

Arys was saved from replying by Quatre, who walked up beside Dorothy. He greeted both of them with a smile. Arys quickly compared Quatre's smile to Dorothy's. Underneath the friendly exterior, Dorothy always seemed to be scheming about something and Arys could see it in her eyes. Quatre, on the other hand, with his trusting blue eyes, treated people at face value, never judging, always forgiving. Arys tried to hide the duffel bag behind her. She knew Quatre would be hurt about her leaving.

"Are you... um..." Quatre's eyes studied Arys' slightly bowed head. Then, he noticed the bag. He frowned. "Why are you carrying that bag, Arys? Are you leaving?" He looked disappointed. "Heero won't like it."

_You bet Heero won't like it._

Arys shuffled her feet nervously and looked up at Quatre. The look in his eyes pricked her conscience. She blew out a sigh of frustration and slung the duffel over one shoulder. 

"No, I'm not leaving," Arys said again. She whirled around and began to walk back to her room. "Not right now, anyway," She added under her breath.

_________________

Quatre turned to Dorothy, a puzzled look on his face. His blue eyes were worried. "What was that all about?"

Dorothy suppressed a grin. She shrugged indifferently. "I don't know."

"Why would she try to leave and then all of a sudden change her mind?" Quatre gazed at Arys' closed door down the hall. "I should tell Heero about this."

"You just did," came an emotionless voice from behind them.

"Heero!" Quatre spun around to find Heero standing only a few feet behind him.

Something clicked in Dorothy's brain. Heero and Arys had been spending a lot of time together lately. In fact, Relena had mentioned it to Dorothy a few times. If Arys knew her true identity, then Heero probably did too. The guy was always on that computer of his. Surely he had found some information on Arys' past on the Net. She glanced at Heero. His blue eyes were impassive as usual, but Dorothy could see the murderous intent in them.

Dorothy leaned against the wall languidly. "So, Heero, were you just going to see Arys?"

Heero glanced at her. 

"Yes."

"She's in her room now."

Heero stared past Dorothy. Then, he lowered his head to its usual position, eyes down, dark brown hair flopping down over them. "Thanks. But I'll talk to her later." Heero turned away and walked down the hall, away from Arys' room. 

Dorothy couldn't help chuckling to herself.

_Too many witnesses, Heero Yuy?_

Dorothy stole a glance at Quatre. The poor boy looked confused. He watched as Heero walked away then shook his head.

"I don't understand."

Dorothy leaned back against the wall. _There are a lot of things you don't understand, Quatre._ She smiled. "Don't even try, Quatre. I don't think anyone can understand those two."

_______________

Later that night, Arys climbed out of bed once again at twelve midnight. She grabbed her still-packed duffel bag from the corner of the room and went to the door. She stopped in front of it, her head bowed.

"Is this the right thing to do?" Arys asked aloud.

Her hand clenched around the strap of her duffel. She raised her head determinedly and slipped the strap over one shoulder. Quietly, she pulled open the door and walked out into the hallway. The shadowed walls seemed to glower at her as she drifted toward the stairs.

_It is right. It has to be._

A few minutes later, Arys stepped into the elevator that would take her below the Institution. She stared for a few moments at the down button. It blinked at her persistently. She pushed it and felt the familiar lurch as the elevator descended. Arys leaned back against the handrail until the elevator bumped to a stop. The doors slid open and Arys walked into the mobile suit storage chamber. 

The elevator doors shut behind her as Arys pulled out her pistol from its hidden holster underneath her trench coat. She expected trouble, particularly in the form of Heero Yuy. Arys carefully maneuvered her way over to where Silverwind stood, pointing her gun around her methodically, trying to sense any movement in the shadows. When she reached Silverwind, Arys kept her gun out but relaxed her guard a bit. She tapped her transmitter.

_Hello, Silverwind._

The Gundam's eyes flashed silver in response.

Arys reached out for the haul cable. Before she went up though, she glanced up at Heero's Gundam. Its eyes remained dark; its wings lay close against its back. 

_A sleeping giant._

Arys hit the button to carry her up to the cockpit. She touched her transmitter again and activated the continuous transmission function.

_Can you open the bay doors, Silverwind?_

_Affirmative_

The ceiling began to open up at the far end of the room. The bay doors were located below an isolated area of the gardens around the Institution. Below the appearing hole was a heavy lift, perfect for raising mobile suits up to ground level.

_Good job._

Arys leapt onto the cockpit platform and climbed into the pilot's seat. The cockpit door shut behind her. 

_Systems check._

Lights began dancing across the console in front of Arys. Occasionally a red light would appear and Arys had to make a few adjustments to the Gundam's systems. Soon, all the lights were green.

_We're green across the board. Let's go, Silverwind._

Silverwind plodded across the floor to the lift. Slowly, the platform rose, taking the Gundam with it. As soon as Silverwind cleared the edge of the hole, Arys fired the thrusters and the Silverwind hovered briefly above the bay doors.

_Destination?_

Arys smiled within her helmet.

_Outer space, Silverwind. I've heard the Earth looks beautiful from outer space. I want to see it, for real._

The Gundam's wings opened up into a position best for high-speed takeoff. Arys flicked a switch on the flightsticks which dumped more fuel to the engines. The roar of the thrusters intensified. Arys looked up at the stars as Silverwind's head followed suit. 

Arys reached up above her head, took a deep breath, and pushed forward the two levers hanging there.

Silverwind screamed into the air, transforming into fighter mode as it did so, blowing dust and leaves into a whirlwind and then vaporizing them in its engine wash. In a few seconds, the Gundam had become only another point of light amongst millions of twinkling stars.

_____________________

Inside the mobile suit storage chamber, the Wing's eyes lit up an eerie green. Heero eyed the red dot blinking across the radar screen in front of him. He had put a tracer on the Silverwind before Arys had showed up. Heero disliked waiting, but he knew that patience was a valuable asset to an individual such as himself. In fact, he had been waiting in the Wing's cockpit for four hours, wondering when Arys would come for her Gundam.

"She's going to outer space."

Heero flicked a few switches and the Wing straightened up from its resting position. As the Gundam hovered toward the lift, Heero performed a quick systems check. All the lights lit up green immediately. He waited patiently as the lift rose beneath his Gundam. As soon as they were above ground, Heero had the Wing transform into fighter mode. He expertly maneuvered the Wing into a takeoff position. With a roar that woke people for miles around, the Wing took off, on a bearing for the stars.

"She has picked the battlefield. It's time to start the battle..."

Heero finished his last statement just as he punched through the last layer of the atmosphere and saw the circle of the earth behind him. 

"...in outer space."

For a moment, he let his gaze trace the outlines of the continents, the swirling cloud formations, then he switched his viewpoint so that he could see the stars.

__________________

Quatre and Noin rushed into the mobile suit storage chamber. Noin ran over to the lift and looked up through the still-open bay doors. The stars peeked back at her, sparkling merrily.

"What do those two think they're doing?" Noin slapped her forehead in frustration. "They'll kill each other!"

Quatre nodded sadly. "I think that's the point."

We can't let them do this."

Quatre put a hand on her arm, surprised. "You mean, you want us to try and stop them in the Taurus suits?"

"Yes."

Quatre smiled in spite of the gravity of the situation. "Two Taurus against two Gundams. Doesn't that seem a little unfair?"

"Quatre, we're not going to join the battle!" Noin said, shocked that Quatre would even think of fighting his two friends. "We're just going to talk them out of battling each other."

Quatre grinned at her. "I know."

Noin glared at him, but she was not really angry with him. She playfully cuffed him on the shoulder. "You tease me too much, Quatre."

Quatre merely smiled again.

Noin shook her head and walked over to the Taurus suits. "Now, let's get going before those two turn each other into orbiting debris fields."

__________________

Heero caught up with Arys in no time. He bore a hole in the back of the Silverwind's head with his eyes. She was not to escape.

"All obstacles must be removed."

Heero's Gundam sped up slightly as if spurred on by his thoughts. Heero's targeting system made a familiar sound as the Silverwind came into range. Heero had heard the sound many times before, usually before obliterating an unworthy enemy. Somehow he knew this time would be different. 

Something else caught Heero's eye as he sped toward Arys. There was a slight blip on his radar. It was erratic, but Heero's instincts had alerted him of it. Heero checked the distance of the radar contact, and seeing how far it was, gave his full attention to the matter at hand.

"I'll deal with it later." Heero set the Silverwind back in his sights and opened fire. 

____________

Arys dodged the blast of energy coming at her from behind. It slid past her harmlessly, vanishing into the void of space. Arys spun her Gundam around to see Heero flying straight toward her in his Gundam. 

"Heero?" Arys asked, her voice filled with anguish.

He responded by slamming straight into her. Arys tumbled backwards and for a moment, all she could see on her screens were stars spinning around her. She quickly regained control and found that she was still facing the Wing. She gritted her teeth as she pulled her double beam sabers from her shoulder sheaths and activated them. The bright blue blades crackled with suppressed energy. A blue hue washed itself over the Silverwind. The pilot within seemed emotionless but her eyes were filled with an infinite sadness. 

"You want to fight, Heero?" Arys raised her sabers with a low sigh. "So be it."

With her sabers pointed at the Wing's head, Arys charged.

__________________

Heero let the semblance of a smile touch his lips. He had been chasing Arys for the past five minutes without a response. She had continually dodged his shots. He was not surprised. Arys was an excellent pilot. Now, she was finally fighting back. Maybe she would be a challenge. Heero flipped a single switch on his control panel. A compartment on the Wing's left shoulder popped open. The silver hilt of the beam saber poked out into the vacuum of space. Heero brought his right hand up to his shoulder and grabbed the weapon. He ignited it just as Arys came down on top of him. Blue blades clashed against his single green, sparking as they scraped against each other. Arys bore down on him harder, but Heero matched her strength easily. The two Gundams pushed away from each other. 

Like two medieval knights jousting in a match, they charged toward each other again. Sabers glanced off each other like small packets of fireworks. The battle was being neither won nor lost by either party. After another deadlock, Heero spun with his saber outstretched to distance himself from the Silverwind. Heero was actually breathing hard due to the exertion of fighting a worthy enemy. He knew Arys was in the same condition. Heero turned until Arys was in the middle of his center screen. 

"Are you going to use the Zero System, Arys?" Heero asked as he positioned his saber into an offensive stance. 

A cynical laugh filled the Wing's cockpit. Arys' helmeted visage came onto the comm screen. "If I use the Zero System, Heero, I'd destroy you." The comm clicked off.

"What's next, Arys?" Heero mused to himself. He saw the Gundam opposite himself pop open its shoulder compartments. 

"Vulcan cannons? What is she thinking?" Heero almost laughed as the Silverwind charged toward him guns blazing. Heero steeled himself for the somewhat weak attack. He throttled up his engines and blasted toward Arys. The Vulcan rounds bounced harmlessly off of Heero's Gundam. As the two Gundams closed the distance between them, Heero saw the sun glint off of an object coming up on the Silverwind's right shoulder.

"What's that?" Heero's eyes widened somewhat at the size of the weapon now pointed directly at his viewscreen. With the velocity each Gundam was traveling, it was impossible to stop. Heero brought his beam saber up as strange discs fired from Arys' weapon flew toward him.

The discs were easily absorbed by the beam saber, but with each hit, Heero was knocked further and further off-balance. One disc made it through his defenses and slammed into his right arm. He staggered backwards. He immediately regained his control and switched his beam saber to the Gundam's left hand. He raised the saber. Arys was heading straight for him. 

Heero seethed inwardly. He had actually been damaged! That was something he was not used to. Rage fueled his actions as the Silverwind flew toward him, its Shiv rifle still firing. He dodged the half-moon discs easily until he was within touching distance. Heero's instincts took over and his speed greatly increased. He no longer thought, just acted. He was moving so fast, Arys could not react quickly enough. Heero knocked the strange rifle up so it was no longer a threat to him, and a nanosecond later he violently swung his beam saber into the Silverwind's right shoulder. The attack was so intense it actually pierced the gundanium armor. Sparks of electricty traced a web across the Silverwind's torso. Heero expected to hear Arys yelling at him to stop as Quatre had done when they had fought, but the other Gundam pilot was silent. Without warning, Heero jerked back in his seat as his Gundam was shoved backwards, breaking contact with the Silverwind. 

He looked up at the middle screen to see the Silverwind's eyes flash with gray fire. Its shoulder was smoking from the saber cut, but Arys seemed to be ignoring it.

The comm screen flickered to life again. "You leave me no choice, Heero." Arys' voice was different. Cold. Distant. Heero looked closely through the visor covering her face and saw her eyes. They were an icy gray and utterly devoid of emotion. Either she was ignoring or she did not even notice the blue streaks of electricity shimmering across the cockpit walls. He could hear warning bells going off in the background. Apparently, his strike through her armor had damaged some of the Silverwind's systems. 

"Oz is not the enemy. The Cinq Kingdom is not the enemy." Arys reached off-screen. The sound of the bells ceased and the electric shimmer in the cockpit disappeared. "You are the enemy, Heero." Through the visor, Heero saw Arys' eyes flash golden with the activation of the Zero System. The comm flickered off. Static replaced her voice.

Heero sheathed his beam saber and took out his buster rifle. The Silverwind reached over its left shoulder and pulled out a double-barreled attachment. It placed the barrel against the front of the Shiv rifle. The barrel clicked into place. Heero vaguely recognized the form. It looked somewhat like his buster rifle. Where had she gotten the attachment?

The Silverwind detached the Shiv/buster rifle from its shoulder and leveled the gun at Heero's Gundam. But Arys never had a chance to use it. A white Taurus suit rammed into her left side, knocking her Gundam off-balance. Arys managed to break away from the suit and turned to aim her rifle at the new arrival.

"Quatre." Arys lowered the rifle. "Get away from here."

Noin hovered beside the Wing. Heero wondered why Arys had not known that Quatre was approaching. Didn't the Zero System tell her everything about the enemy?

"Noin, what are you doing here?" Heero asked as he switched to audio/visual direct communication. Noin's face appeared on the comm screen. 

"You can't do this, Heero. You and Arys are allies, not enemies."

"I have my orders."

"That doesn't matter, Heero." Noin leaned closer to the screen. "You have to stop this fighting!"

"It does matter." Heero flicked off the comm switch and the screen blanked out.

He left the open channel on though so that he could hear any conversation going on between Arys and Quatre.

"Arys, you shouldn't be fighting!" The Taurus suit floated right in front of the Silverwind's rifle.

"Quatre, you wouldn't understand..." Arys replied. The Silverwind drifted sideways, trying to keep Quatre's mobile suit out of the rifle sight. "Get out of the way, Quatre. You aren't the enemy. Heero is."

Quatre stubbornly followed her, refusing to get out of danger. "I can't let you do this, Arys."

Arys groaned. She seemed to consider his words. The Silverwind finally lowered its rifle in acquiescence. "Okay, Quatre, since you won't move, I'll stop fighting. I've deactivated the Zero System." Her voice sounded weary, defeated. "I just have one question for Heero."

Heero thumbed on his comm. "I'm listening."

"Why are you trying to kill me?"

Heero grunted softly. "Your Gundam dumps data to an Antarctic Oz base every week. That makes you and your Gundam a security leak and therefore a threat to the Cinq Kingdom. You must be destroyed."

Arys began to laugh, but her laugh was not a mirthful one. "Heero, you know me better than that. I found that datalink as soon as I arrived in the Cinq Kingdom. I didn't know what it was for, so I just reprogrammed the datalink to download files from my Gundam's core dumps, not the hard drive. The dumps contain junk from diagnostics I run on my Gundam's systems. In other words, Oz is getting info on what's wrong with my Gundam."

Then, Arys smiled. Heero was taken aback by the way her face lit up when she smiled. Even her eyes lit up. The effects of the Zero System were already beginning to wear off.

"Pretty smart, huh, Heero?" She actually winked at him. "Bet even you couldn't do that."

"Uh..." Heero stammered, still in shock.

The Silverwind holstered its rifle and slowly approached the Wing. The hatch in the torso of the Gundam opened up and Arys stepped out. "Truce? If you promise not to kill me."

Heero gazed at Arys silently for a few moments until he decided to open his own hatch. Then, he nodded. "Truce. The mission is unnecessary. There is no need to kill you." The ice seemed to melt between the two pilots. 

Noin keyed in a direct comm link to Quatre. She grinned at him. "Mission accomplished?"

Quatre breathed out a sigh of relief and smiled at Noin. "Mission accomplished."

________________

Author's notes: So what do you all think of the story? Is it good, is it bad, is it ugly? Oh, sorry to all you Relena fans. I kind of bashed her in chapter 2's disclaimer. I don't like her for some reason. Maybe it's because I know if she tried to pilot a Gundam, she'd probably crash it into something. Also, I think Heero needs someone with a little more spunk (is that the right word? :-) Don't worry though. Relena will get to be one of the main characters in chapters 6 and 7. After all, she does become Queen of the World for a little while. I'd give a little teaser for Chapter 5 but I don't have the chapter written yet. It's still floating around in my head in itty-bitty pieces. Soon, I'll get them put together into a chapter. Remember, patience is a virtue (but not always rewarding :-)

Update: Chapter 5 is written. Arys and Heero take on 30 Oz mobile suits (but not all at once) And (drumroll) Duo Maxwell makes an appearance in his Deathscythe! Also I have to give a little credit here, my brother wrote parts of the battle scenes for me. He ain't a bad writer! :-) He's also my prereader and tells me whether or not to put things in. (In other words, he tells me if I've written something stupid :-) Hope you all are enjoying the story, cuz I sure am enjoying writing it!


	6. Chapter 5

Standard Disclaimer #5: I'll risk getting sued... Actually, no, I won't. I don't own GW. Get used to it. ****

Circle of the Earth

By Ceres Sky 

Chapter 5

"Noin! We've got ten Leos heading straight for us! They're coming from somewhere near the Earth's south pole!" Quatre rotated his mobile suit away from the two Gundam pilots shaking hands in the vacuum of space and looked down at the Earth.

"What?" Noin turned her suit as well, switching the viewpoint of her screens. She sighed. "Actually, I'm not that surprised. We're in Oz space so, of course, they would be monitoring it. What's their ETA?"

"Three minutes and fifteen seconds." 

Noin flicked the comm switch. "Hey, you two, we've got a little problem. Ten Leos looking for a fight."

The two pilots floating in space glanced at each other and immediately headed back into their Gundams. They both clicked onto the comm system at the same time.

"Origin?" Arys asked, her face coming up on Noin's comm screen.

"What's their ETA?" Heero's voice came on soon after Arys'.

"Earth's south pole." Noin waited for Arys' reaction. "And ETA's two minutes forty-six seconds."

Arys bowed her head and muttered something under her breath that the comm did not pick up. She tapped something on her console. "I've got it. Antarctic Outpost." She looked up at Noin. "You and Quatre head back to the Cinq Kingdom. Heero and I will cover you."

Noin nodded. "You think you two can handle it?"

Arys looked slightly amused. "If we can't handle ten Leos piloted by incompetent soldiers, then we shouldn't be Gundam pilots."

Noin laughed. "All right, Arys. You can have them. Quatre, we're going home. Arys and Heero get to blow these guys away." 

"Acknowledged," Quatre replied.

The two Taurus suits changed to fighter form and blasted off, down into Earth's atmosphere.

As soon as Noin cut the transmission, Arys opened a direct channel to Heero. "You get all that, Heero?" 

"Yes." 

"Then, let's go." 

The Silverwind and the Wing fired their thrusters simultaneously. They met the enemy right above the Earth's exosphere. Soon, they were surrounded by the ten Leos.

"Arys Walker. Heero Yuy. You will surrender your Gundams to Oz and you will be executed."

Arys fought the urge to laugh. "We don't have a choice, huh? Surrender and be executed? Whatever happened to 'Surrender or be executed?' Well," Arys narrowed her steel-gray eyes, studying the Leos' formation, "I choose neither." 

She pulled out her rifle and aimed it at the leader. "You'd better surrender to us or you'll find yourself scattered across the exosphere in a million little pieces." She touched the button to activate the Zero System. She hated to waste it on these soldiers, but she needed to see how the system worked against a real enemy. The Oz soldiers in their Leos provided the perfect chance.

The Leo did not move from its position. The comm remained silent.

Arys felt the effects of the Zero System begin to take over her mind. Her emotions went cold as the ice glaciers of the North Pole. Feelings served only as a distraction during a battle, and distractions were what got many seasoned pilots killed in battle. Arys' focus centered on one thing and one thing only - the enemy.

_Silverwind, use the beam sabers._ The Silverwind reached up and replaced the rifle behind its shoulder.

"Heero, let's waste them." Her eyes flashed briefly as the Silverwind leaped forward, unsheathing its double beam sabers in a blaze of power. 

_____________

The leader struggled to move out of the Silverwind's way, but the Gundam was not aiming for him. Instead, Arys attacked the Leo hovering to his right. The lead pilot watched in horror as his subordinate's mobile suit disintegrated into four pieces and exploded in a flowering bloom of orange and red. The pilot's death scream echoed through his mind. The leader gulped as a robotic foot floated by his mobile suit.

"Attack formation!" The lead pilot yelled into the comm. The other eight Leos immediately followed his orders. Four of them taking on each Gundam.

It was too late for one Leo though. Heero had already pulled out his buster rifle and blown another one of the mobile suits apart. The remains of the Leo drifted down into the Earth's atmosphere, glowing red with friction as they fell. Soon they would dissolve into nothing more than meteoric dust.

Heero's monotonic voice pierced the air in the lead pilot's cockpit. "You die last, lead pilot."

The Wing turned away from the leader to take on the last three Leos.

Lead punched his comm. "Homebase, this is Alpha One. We have two Gundams attacking. I have two Leos down. Request reinforcements."

"Alpha One, this is Homebase. Sending Alpha Two to your coordinates."

Lead leaned back in his seat with a sigh of relief. The reinforcements were coming in the form of twenty mobile dolls. Surely, they would be able to handle these two Gundams. Lead's comm suddenly clicked on.

"Sir! They're too strong! What do we do? Argghhh!" The pilot's voice was suddenly replaced by static. 

"Three down," Lead whispered. "These Gundams are unstoppable! And we're dropping like flies." Lead raised his head, his eyes filled with resolve. "But we'll die fighting."

________________

"Too easy," Arys muttered to herself. The enemy was clear in her mind. She knew where each Leo's position was, she knew how and when they would attack, and she could see the pilots' frightened faces right before they died. Some part of her deep inside regretted their deaths, but her feelings had been shoved aside by the Zero System. She simply could not feel emotion. 

_Behind you._

Silverwind's message flashed into her mind instantly and in a millisecond, Arys responded by spinning around in a move that would have been impossible without the Zero System. The Silverwind's beam sabers came up in a defensive maneuver that blocked some rifle shots from a Leo. Then, the Silverwind dove forward, its beam sabers ready for another kill.

The Silverwind slashed its sabers through the Leo. It briefly staggered back drunkenly and then disappeared into a cloud of exploding gases. The Silverwind whirled around to impale another Leo on the tip of one of its beam sabers. The Gundam whipped the saber to the right, cleaving the damaged mobile suit in half, just in time to take the head off a Leo bearing down on it from behind. 

Arys favored the headless suit with a grim smile before she destroyed it with a precise slice down the middle. The Leo split in half, its surface crackling with released energy. The Leo glowed blue for a second before exploding in a yellow ball of fire. The Silverwind jetted away to avoid the oncoming shockwave. 

_Mobile dolls detected. ETA: one minute._

_Shiv rifle._ Was that her thought or her Gundam's? Arys did not waste time trying to figure it out. She thumbed a button on her flight stick.

The Silverwind pulled out the modified Shiv rifle after sheathing its beam sabers. The Gundam drifted in space, the rifle aimed at the onslaught of mobile dolls. Arys charged the rifle to full power. Her glowing gray eyes narrowed to slits.

"Fools. All of them." 

Arys patiently waited for the enemy.

____________________

Heero shot the arm off the remaining Leo with a blast from his buster rifle. The arm floated in space, the Leo's gun still attached to it. The Leo itself fell back, its arm socket filled with frayed wiring that shot off sparks of electricity.

"You Gundam pilots deserve to die!" Lead yelled. 

Heero remained silent. He observed the Leo make a last-ditch attempt to pry its gun from the fingers of the detached arm. He let the Leo get a hold of the gun. He raised his buster rifle.

"Yes, we may deserve death, but so does everyone else who lives on Earth and in space."

"You're insane!"

Heero's voice remained impassive. "Everyone dies sooner or later. You, however, will die sooner."

He fired his buster rifle and a brilliant gold beam shot from the weapon. The energy beam slammed into the Leo's chest, boring a hole through it. Heero fired again, taking off the Leo's other arm. He began to laugh, hysterically. It was a laugh not filled with genuine mirth, but with borderline insanity. 

Heero managed to get himself under control long enough to level his rifle at the Leo again. 

"You are not a worthy enemy." 

Heero fired the rifle and the Leo dissolved in a wash of destructive energy. He spun away from the exploding Leo to come up beside the waiting Silverwind. He noticed that it held its Shiv rifle at the ready, aiming down toward Earth.

"Heero, mobile dolls," Arys said. "Twenty of them."

"Hmm..." Heero said.

"How much power do you have left in your buster rifle?"

Heero checked the gauge on his console. "Enough for one high-powered shot."

"Charge it. We'll take out as many of them as we can with a double shot."

Heero immediately charged up his buster rifle. The gauge drained to zero. He glanced at his radar. It beeped at him, signaling that the enemy was within attacking range.

"Here they come."

Twin wide-width gold beams flared from the barrels of the buster rifles of the Wing and the Silverwind. The fatal energy flowed over the approaching mobile dolls. Many of them exploded in a brilliant display of pyrotechnics on contact, but a few of the ones following behind survived the blast. 

"Seven left," Arys said. "Use your beam sabers."

Heero was not sure if Arys was speaking to him or to her Gundam, but then he realized that she was speaking to both of them. He put away his now useless buster rifle and pulled out his beam saber again. Arys took out her own double blades and crossed them in front of the Silverwind, forming an X in front of the Silverwind's face. The sight of the two Gundams holding beam sabers would probably have frightened a human pilot but the mobile dolls were soulless. They knew no fear. 

The Silverwind flew forward, Arys yelling a challenge to the computer-controlled mobile suits. The Silverwind drove its sabers through two mobile dolls at the same time. The dolls both managed to get off a few shots at the Gundam before floating off, split in half.

Arys did not bother to stay and watch them blow up. She blasted away, to take on one mobile doll. It aimed its gun at her, firing, the red light on its triangular head blinking unfeelingly. Arys dodged the incoming beams and came down on top of the doll.

"You are useless." Arys swung her sabers down in a sweeping arc onto the doll's shoulders. 

The doll stayed in one piece for only a few moments before drifting apart like sliced bread. One arm twitched involuntarily, firing a few harmless stray shots. Then, the doll was enveloped in an orange plume of fire, just as all the others had been.

Arys flew off again, watching Heero take out the remaining four mobile dolls with a few slashes from his green beam saber. Arys switched off the Zero System and sighed with relief as her emotions slowly began to return to her. She rubbed her arms, trying to rub some warmth into them. She always felt cold after using the Zero System. She had yet to figure out why. Arys silently drifted in space as Heero approached her after defeating the mobile dolls. He was indeed a fighter, and he was not even using a Zero System. Arys did not want to think of how Heero fought while using the Zero System. He was probably practically unstoppable.

"That was too easy," Heero observed, his bowed head appearing on the Silverwind's comm screen.

Arys looked around at the screens in her cockpit. Debris from the enemy mobile suits floated in space in all of the screens. Every single enemy had been destroyed and soon their remains would be nothing more than shooting stars in the Earth's atmosphere for some stargazer to enjoy.

"Yes, it was," Arys said as she had the Silverwind put its beam sabers away.

_Those were unpiloted mobile suits, Arys._ Silverwind spoke into her mind.

Arys reached over and switched off her comm system. "I know. They were controlled by computers. They're called mobile dolls."

_They were the enemy?_

That was when Arys realized that Silverwind had fought the mobile dolls only because she had them associated as the enemy in her mind. Arys bowed her head. "Yes, they were."

_All mobile dolls are the enemy?_

"Yes." Only Oz used mobile dolls in battles. Arys figured it was a safe assumption. 

_Saving in databank._

"Sure, that's fine, Silverwind." Arys briefly wondered if Silverwind seeing mobile dolls as the enemy for itself would speed up her reaction time any. It probably would. She would have to try a simulation when she got back to the Cinq Kingdom.

The comm system clicked back on. "Arys? What's happening over there?" Heero almost sounded worried.

"Nothing's wrong, Heero. I was just talking to Silverwind."

"Oh yeah, I keep forgetting. You talk to your Gundam." Heero's voice was sarcastic.

"Doesn't everybody?"

Heero was quiet for a few moments. "Yes, I guess so."

Both pilots were silent, then Arys turned around to view the Earth. "I was right. The Earth does look beautiful from outer space. So peaceful." 

"It does look peaceful, but underneath the peace, lies the threat of a war that has already begun, in outer space." 

"The Earth itself has done nothing against the colonies. It was Oz who began this war. When Oz is destroyed, the war will end."

"Perhaps. But human nature is corrupt. There will always be war."

"So when Oz is destroyed, another war will begin. The balance of power. Empires rise and empires fall. And innocent people die. It is a vicious circle." Arys studied the Earth as it slowly rotated beneath them.

"Indeed it is," Heero said, observing the faraway look in Arys' eyes. 

"Is it worth trying to stop the circle, Heero? Humans can only do so much." Arys lowered her eyes to look at Heero on the comm screen.

"No, it probably isn't worth trying, but we have to try anyway. We have to stand up for what we believe in."

"And what are those beliefs, Heero?"

"Oz, the Romefeller Foundation, and anyone else who dares to try to establish a tyrannical rule should be destroyed. Earth and the colonies must strive to coexist, neither trying to take over the other. The people should be allowed to live in peace, go on with their lives without the worry of being killed."

"That's utopia, Heero. It's impossible to achieve."

"But we can't be blamed for trying."

"I suppose you're right." Arys sighed. "I just feel as if there's something more out there... Something more to believe in than universal peace. I just haven't found it yet. I don't even know what it is."

Heero remained silent, realizing that Arys just needed to talk to someone. He happened to be the only one available at the moment. He did not mind being a sounding board for a few minutes. But Arys had other ideas.

Arys shook her head. "Let's get back, Heero. Quatre and Noin are probably wondering if we're dead."

"They know us better than that, Arys. They're probably drinking tea right now, talking out how we defeated the enemy."

Arys had to laugh, the picture was too funny. "You're right."

The two Gundams transformed into fighter mode and fired their afterburners. They vanished into the whirling atmosphere, the white-hot flame trailing them blending in with the clouds.

________________

Seemingly out of the stars, a dark figure coalesced a few kilometers away from where the Silverwind and the Wing had defeated the Oz mobile suits. It raised its midnight bat-like wings slightly and jetted forward until it drifted amongst the debris. 

"Whoa! Talk about a debris field!" Duo exclaimed to himself as he batted away a robotic hand. It disintegrated as soon as he hit it.

"A girl was piloting that other Gundam?" Duo said aloud. 

He flicked a switch on his console. He noticed the destination of the two other Gundams. He smiled. "I think it's time to pay a visit to the Cinq Kingdom for a little bit. And maybe I can get Heero to help me do a little bit of repair work on my Gundam while I'm there. Provided he doesn't steal any of my parts again."

A red light blinked on his console. An incoming transmission. Duo tapped the receiver. Hilde's face appeared on the screen.

"Hey, Duo!"

Duo grinned from ear to ear. "Hiya, Hilde! What's up?"

Hilde pushed back her beret, revealing her sparkling brown eyes. "Remember that mission you gave me? Well, I completed it!"

"Good girl! You found Trowa?" Duo leaned closer to the screen.

"Yup, he's working at a circus here in town. But he doesn't remember anything, Duo." Hilde frowned sadly. "Not you, not his Gundam, none of the other Gundam pilots. And Catherine doesn't want him to remember."

"Hold on just one second! Who's Catherine?"

"She's really good friends with Trowa and doesn't want him fighting anymore. She's known him for a long time." Hilde paused. "Catherine's a knife thrower in the circus and she uses Trowa in her act."

Duo chuckled. "Boy, if a girl like that had me up against a wall, I wouldn't want to remember the past either!"

Hilde's brown eyes laughed along with him. "So how's your search for Quatre going?"

Duo smiled. "Well, I think I just may have hit the jackpot, Hilde. I found the Wing battling some Oz mobile suits right above Earth." He didn't tell her about the other Gundam. "Maybe Heero can tell us something about where Quatre is. Once I find Quatre, I'm dragging him over there to knock some sense into Trowa."

Hilde laughed. "You would, Duo. Get going. I'll talk to you tomorrow."

"Right." Duo cut the transmission. He stretched his arms above his head. "What a great girl!" 

Duo lowered his arms and tapped the console. "Time for the Great Destroyer to make an appearance on Earth!" He rested his hands on the control sticks beside his pilot chair and pushed them forward.

The Deathscythe's wings folded close to its back and dove into the atmosphere.

Author's notes: Boy, this chapter was just action, wasn't it? Except for that little part near the end where Arys and Heero actually have a serious conversation. It might take me awhile to get Duo down right. So if he doesn't sound quite like himself, well, just give me some time and I'm sure I'll get him right soon. I should warn you now. Duo won't be cussing any in this story. :-)

Teaser for Chapter 6: Duo and Arys meet and instantly become friends. Hey, they're both Americans. Arys and Relena take a trip to see the Romefeller Foundation, but both go for very different reasons. Relena basically disowns her brother and Arys is interrogated by Romefeller officials. Afterwards, she remembers nothing about it and thinks that she was just given a tour of the Romefeller Foundation building. Talk about memory loss. Heero tries to take on the Romefeller Foundation's attack force at Luxembourg by himself and fails. But in the process, he acquires the Epyon from Treize.


	7. Chapter 6

Standard Disclaimer #6: I'm just a poor college student who loves anime so please don't sue me. 

****

Circle of the Earth

Chapter 6

By Ceres Sky 

"Arys, what is it like for you to use the Zero System?" Quatre asked. 

Arys' hand tightened on his arm. She stopped walking and looked up at him, her gray eyes sad. Quatre and Arys were walking around in the gardens the day after the space battle. Quatre had insisted that they do something relaxing since she still owed him that walk from the day Heero had interrupted them.

Arys thought for a moment, her eyes clouded. Quatre stared down into her eyes, almost wishing he had not asked. Then, her gaze cleared and she gave Quatre a half-smile. One word came to her lips.

"Cold." Arys shivered in spite of the sunshine beating down on them. "Always cold..." Her voice trailed off. "I don't know why."

Quatre took her hand off his arm and put his arm around her. She was still shivering. "Are you all right?" Quatre asked, concerned. He looked down at the ground. "I'm sorry I asked."

Arys stopped trembling and placed her hand over his. "No, Quatre, it's all right. Let's keep walking."

"If you're sure?" Quatre removed his arm from around her shoulders and placed her hand in the crook of his arm again. 

Arys nodded. They continued walking.

They turned a corner of the walk and came face to face with...Duo Maxwell. 

"Hello, Quatre." Duo's eyes were shadowed by the hat he wore. He was leaning casually against a tree lining the sidewalk. 

"Duo, is that you?" Quatre stopped in his tracks, wanting to make sure that it was really his fellow Gundam pilot.

"The one and only Great Destroyer strikes again!" Duo dramatically swept off his cap and bowed deeply. He straightened and Arys saw that his cobalt blue eyes danced with merriment. "I've been looking all over the solar system for you, Quatre!"

"What for?" Quatre looked puzzled. 

Duo gave Quatre a mischievous grin. "Well, before I tell you, I think you should introduce this lovely young lady to me!"

Arys flushed. No one had ever called her 'lovely' before. She wasn't used to compliments from guys. She quickly regained her composure. The flush disappeared from her cheeks and she stepped forward, her hand held out to him.

"Arys Walker." 

Duo took her hand and shook it heartily. "Not much on words, are you?" He said.

Arys shook her head. "I'm afraid I'm not much of a conversationalist."

Duo let go of her hand and slapped his forehead, obviously frustrated. "Quatre, is this girl anything like Heero?"

Quatre nodded. "Yes, very much so." Quatre paused and smiled at Arys. "Until you get to know her, that is. Then, she's like Arys."

Arys gave him a grateful look.

Duo crossed his arms over his chest and narrowed his eyes as he studied her. "You're a Gundam pilot, aren't you?"

Arys nodded. "I pilot the Silverwind."

"Yeah, I watched you and Heero battle those mobile suits yesterday. It was quite a show." 

Arys cocked her head, puzzled. "You were there?"

"I was using the hyperjammer on my Deathscythe so that no one could see me. Heero might have noticed something strange on his radar screen, but I think he was too psyched about the battle to do anything about it."

"Where's your Gundam?" Quatre asked.

Duo pointed over their heads. "Back there. Way back in the woods. I didn't want any girls trying to steal it. That's one thing I noticed. There are an awful lot of girls around here."

Arys could not help grinning at Duo. She liked this boy. He was a breath of fresh air in the confines of the Institution. "Quatre, shouldn't we tell Noin about this? We can hide his Gundam with ours in the storage chamber."

"Well, would it fit? Those bat wings are pretty big." Quatre jokingly pushed Duo. The second Gundam pilot stumbled away and almost bumped into a tree.

Duo regained his balance and stood with his arms akimbo. "Quatre, you know as well as I do that the wings fold!"

"Yeah, I know." Quatre muffled a laugh.

Arys was watching this little exchange between her fellow pilots with amusement. At least the stress of the war had not gotten to them. As Arys thought to herself, Quatre and Duo started a little fight, throwing rocks and such. Suddenly, a rock hit her on the shoulder. It was more annoying than painful. She looked around to see Quatre rearing back to throw another rock at her. Just as Quatre was about to release it, Duo came up behind him and tackled him. Arys stifled a laugh at the sight of the two wrestling on the ground. The shouts of "Get off me!" and name calling only added to the hilarity of the scene. She decided to join the "fun" and rushed into the fray. She jumped up and landed on Duo with her elbow digging into his back. He answered with a surprised grunt. 

"Hey, I didn't expect you to get in on this!" Duo's face was dusty, but his smile shone through the grime.

"I'm as human as you are and I don't pass up a good fight!" 

The trio resorted to throwing some more pieces of nature. The laughter and shouting immediately stopped when they heard the unmistakable sound of footsteps behind them.

Noin looked down at the bundle of Gundam pilots and allowed a confused look to spread over her face.

"What are you three doing?" Noin crouched down and scanned the pilots' faces. Arys sat back against a tree and took a deep breath. The two guys just sprawled out in the middle of the sidewalk, breathing hard. 

Arys looked at Noin. She rubbed the back of her head. She actually looked embarrassed. "Just having a little fun. If anybody needs fun, it's a Gundam pilot." 

Noin was still confused. Duo and Quatre were silent, mainly because they were still gasping for air.

"Right, I just came by to tell you that Silverwind is fully loaded and ready to go. That is, if you're planning on going anywhere." Noin stood and looked from Quatre to Duo.

"Duo Maxwell, I'll bet you started this whole thing." Noin gave him a mock-angry glare.

"Quatre was making fun of my Gundam!" Duo stood and brushed himself off.

"By the way, what are you doing here?"

"I was looking for Mr. Rich Boy here." Duo jabbed Quatre in the arm.

Quatre stood and glowered at Duo. "Quit the name calling!" 

Arys dusted herself off, stood up and nodded to Noin and Quatre. "I'll see you two later. I'm going to check Silverwind." She extended her hand to Duo and grinned. "Nice to have met you, Maxwell. You met the real Arys today."

Duo shook her hand and returned the smile. "It was a pleasure meeting you too." Duo grimaced and put a hand on his back. "You and your elbow." 

_____________________

Heero scanned the screen in front of him. His mission report to Dr. J was less than satisfactory in his taste, but it would have to do. He sighed. His first "failed" mission. Actually, Heero considered the mission defunct due to the factor of Arys' reprogramming of the datalink. He had to admit that it had been a smart move.

"If she hadn't fiddled with the datalink as soon as she arrived, I would have had to kill her." 

Heero stared at the screen. For a moment, he did not see the words he had typed there, only Arys' face when she had told him about his mission. It had been full of pain. She had known even before he had that his mission would be to kill her.

_Why did she stay?_ Heero rubbed his eyes and Arys' face disappeared off the screen, replaced by the mission report.

Heero hit Enter and the mission report vanished. It was on its way to Dr. J. He only hoped that Dr. J would understand.

He was about to get up from his chair and leave to find Quatre and Arys when a red light began blinking on his screen. It meant that he had another mission. Heero leaned back in his chair and punched the space bar.

"Already? I just sent my report a few seconds ago."

Heero read the document aloud to himself.

_____________

"Background: Subject: Arys Walker

Arys Walker has proven to be adept at outsmarting Oz. Her datalink to the Oz base was actually connected to her Gundam's core dump. The girl is now a threat only if she is captured by Oz. Romefeller has sent out a warrant for her arrest. 

Mission: Protect Arys Walker at all costs. She cannot fall into Romefeller's clutches.

Footnote: If the subject is already deceased, disregard this mission."

________________

"So they want her alive now, do they? They should be glad that I was not able to kill her." 

Heero tapped the Enter button. "Mission accepted."

He stood up and shut his laptop. "It isn't much of a mission though. Arys is more than capable of taking care of herself." 

A knock sounded at the door. Heero turned toward it.

"Hmm?" He said as he went and opened it.

Quatre stood in the doorway, a smile stretching across his face, which was also covered with dirt. His usually neat blonde hair was mussed and covered with pieces of leaves and dust. 

Heero surveyed his friend with an impassive nod. "Hi, Quatre." He ignored Quatre's rumpled state.

"Hey, Heero, guess who's here?"

Heero stared at him, not replying. 

"Come on, guess!"

"Why? You're going to tell me anyway."

Quatre frowned at him. "Aww, Heero, you're no fun!"

Heero crossed his arms over his chest and leaned against the doorjamb. He sighed. "Duo, right."

Quatre stepped backwards in surprise. "How did you know?"

Heero raised his head. "Last night, during my battle with Arys, I picked up an erratic radar signature. It's the kind of signature only the Deathscythe would put out while using its hyperjammer. I didn't even think about what it was until this morning."

Quatre waved Heero out into the hall. "Well, Duo's about to put his Gundam into the storage chamber. We're supposed to meet him there."

Heero followed Quatre down the hall. "Has Duo met Arys?"

Quatre laughed. "Up close and personal. We had a little wrestling match out in the gardens." Quatre motioned to his rumpled clothes. "That's why I look like this."

Arys wrestling with two boys? "Is she all right?" Heero asked.

"Of course she's all right." Quatre smiled. "She took Duo out with an elbow in his back. You should have seen Miss Noin's face when she walked up and saw us all sprawled on the ground."

"I"m sorry I missed it," Heero said. 

_I knew Arys could take care of herself._

____________________

Arys had just finished running her simulation when the cargo bay doors across the room opened up to reveal the Deathscythe coming down on the lift. Arys slid down the haul line and lithely jumped to the ground when she was close enough. She ran over to her console and checked over her results. It had taken a bit of reprogramming to get the computer system to accept the numbers from the sim, but she had finally gotten it to work. 

"Hmm... Up five percent." It did not seem like a lot on the screen, but Arys knew that it was actually a big percentage for an improvement in reaction time. Arys reached up for her transmitter.

_We did it, Silverwind._

The Gundam's eyes flashed silver for a moment. Arys looked up at her Gundam and smiled in reply.

The elevator to the storage chamber opened and Noin, Quatre, and Heero stepped into the room. 

"Hey, Arys! Get out of the way!" Noin yelled across the room.

Arys waved at her as she leaned against the foot of her Gundam. "Don't worry. I don't plan on getting squished by that..." Arys motioned toward the Gundam lumbering across the room, "...thing."

Duo's voice filled the chamber. "Thing? I'm insulted! This 'thing' has a name."

"I bet you can't even spell its name, Maxwell!" Arys shouted loudly, surprising Noin, Quatre, and especially Heero.

"Just you wait till I get down there, Arys Walker!"

Arys rolled her eyes. "Ooh, I'm scared."

Noin walked into the middle of the room and began guiding the Deathscythe to its spot beside the Silverwind. Duo slipped out of the cockpit and slid down the haul line, landing solidly on his feet. He was instantly surrounded by Noin and the other Gundam pilots.

"Hey, Heero, what's up?" Duo slapped Heero on the shoulder. 

Heero looked less than pleased to see the American pilot, but Arys could see in Heero's eyes that he was happy Duo was here.

"Hi, Duo." Heero's expression remained emotionless.

Duo cuffed him on the shoulder. "Yeah, it's nice to see you too."

Heero's face darkened. "Don't do that."

Duo made a fist and pulled it back, getting ready to sock Heero again. "You mean this?" He was about to punch Heero when Noin grabbed his hand.

"Uh, Duo, I don't think that's a good idea. You've already been in one fight. I think that's enough for today."

Duo relaxed his fist. "Speaking of fights." Duo turned to Arys and regarded her coolly. "I recall a certain Gundam pilot accusing me of being uneducated."

Arys returned the cool stare. "Oh, I didn't say that. I just said you couldn't spell Deathscythe." Arys gave him an expectant look, as if waiting for him to say something.

"What?" Duo asked, raising an eyebrow at her questioningly.

"Spell it."

Duo scratched his head. "Uh, D-E-A-T-H-S-Y-T-H-E." He said the letters slowly.

"Wrong."

Heero wondered what Duo was doing. He knew Duo could spell and rather well in fact. Then, he saw the teasing look Arys was giving Duo.

"You're impossible, Duo, but I like you anyway." Arys turned on her heel and walked away.

Duo shook his head, a smile on his face. He called after Arys. "It's not like I have to put it on my driver's license or anything!" 

__________________

Heero was sitting in the library reading when he heard a sudden commotion out in the hallway. There were the sounds of people running down the hallway and girls screaming in fear. Heero immediately burst into the hallway. Duo whizzed past, laughing hysterically and holding a laptop tucked under one arm. 

"Hey, Heero!" Duo said as he flew by.

Heero looked down the hall behind Duo to see Arys. There was murder in her eyes and a gun in her hand. She stopped in front of Heero.

"Maxwell, you moron, come back here with my computer!" She shouted after the retreating long-haired pilot.

"Arys, what's going on?" 

Arys winked at Heero. "Nothing." 

She took off again, hot on Duo's trail. A few girls shrieked as Arys passed them.

"Maxwell, if anything happens to my laptop, I'm going to kill you using my Shiv rifle!"

"Ha! You gotta catch me first!" Duo's voice floated back to where Heero was standing in the hallway. 

Heero stood there until the two Gundam pilots disappeared around the corner, heading away from the area. He could still hear girls screaming though. It was amazing how far girls' voices could carry.

"Are you as confused as I am?" Quatre's voice came from behind Heero.

Heero glanced back at him. "I'm not sure."

"Duo said that he and Arys were going to end the chase in the library."

"What?" Heero said, turning completely around. "Did they plan this?"

Duo came running from the other side of the hallway again. 

"Outta the way!" He shouted, barrelling through Heero, Quatre, and a few girls. He shoved open the door to the library and stumbled inside.

Heero watched as the door banged shut behind Duo. He spun around just in time to find Arys heading straight toward him. She ran into him, grabbing his arm in the process, and dragged him into the library. 

"Wha..? Hey!" Heero staggered in after her. He could not believe how strong the girl was. Quatre followed them in, a curious look on his face.

Arys walked over to where Duo was standing and playfully bopped him on the head with her gun. Then, she bent over and began to laugh. Duo joined her. Heero and Quatre just watched them, totally confused.

"Did you see their faces?" Duo said in between laughs. "It was great!"

Arys covered one of her ears. "I don't think I've ever heard screams so loud. I bet they were scared of you, Duo."

"No way, Arys. It had to have been you with that crazed look in your eyes and all that gun-waving."

"I guess the girls here aren't used to seeing a gun-toting girl yelling bloody murder."

"Yeah, what's up with calling me a moron?"

"Hey, it was the only name I could think up on the spot."

Duo crossed his arms over his chest. "Hmph, well, next time, think of something better."

Heero stepped between the two and turned to Duo. "Just what is going on here?"

Duo pointed around Heero at Arys. "It was her idea."

"Was not."

"Was too!"

"Was not."

"Was too!"

"Hold it right there!" Heero put up his hands. "What's the matter with you two? Relena's going to have a fit when she finds out about this."

Arys waved off the statement indifferently. "She'll forgive us, being the kind pacifist she is."

Heero glared at Arys. "Please don't make light of..."

"Her ideals are impossible. I've told you that..."

Heero's voice rose a bit. "Haven't we had this discussion already?"

"Yes!" Arys planted her hands on her hips and glared right back at him. "And that time you weren't yelling at me!"

"I'm not yelling!"

This time Quatre stepped between them. Duo just looked on with an amused smile on his face. 

"Heero, Arys, calm down." Quatre put out his hands placatingly. "Heero, Arys and Duo were just having some fun. Of course, I don't really approve of the gun-waving part." Quatre gave Arys a stern look. Arys withered slightly. "But I'm sure Relena won't kick them out or anything like that. And Arys, Heero deserves an apology. You just insulted a friend of his. So, I think both of you should just apologize to each other."

Heero and Arys just looked at each other for a few minutes. Finally, Arys put out her hand. "You forgive me, and I'll forgive you. Deal?"

Heero reluctantly shook her hand. "Deal."

Arys turned to Duo. "And I forgive you too, Duo." She had a serious look on her face.

Duo pointed a finger into his chest. "Me? You forgive me? Wait just a second! I think it should be the other way around!"

"Yeah, right!" Arys walked toward the library door. 

The librarian came over to their group. She was so timid, it had taken her all of fifteen minutes to get up enough courage to ask them to quiet down. 

"Excuse me, could you please...?" She was interrupted by Duo.

"Don't worry. We were just leaving." Duo followed Arys out the door. His voice rose as soon as he left the library. "Where do you think you're going, Arys? You owe me an apology."

"Shut up, Duo." Arys' voice drifted in through the closing door.

Quatre and Heero glanced at each other and sighed.

"What is it with those two?" Heero shook his head. He couldn't believe he had just yelled at Arys like that.

Quatre shrugged. "Maybe it's because they're both Americans."

Author's notes: Hmm... This chapter ended up being all about Duo and Arys... um... having too much fun. Hope it didn't bore you all too much. The story has been pretty serious up till now though, and you can consider this a light-hearted break from all the fighting. Hey, I had to kill some time (one day to be exact) and this chapter fits in perfectly with my timeframe. Cuz tomorrow, Arys (without her Gundam) goes off to the summit meeting with Relena, Heero goes off to save the Treize faction's HQ, Quatre and Noin have to save Relena when she's coming back from the summit meeting, and Duo goes off to Luxembourg and has to deal with a crazy Heero piloting the Epyon. Sound like fun? Oh, and yeah, I know that bringing Duo in is totally out of the episode storyline, but the guy's so funny, I had to bring him in early. Don't worry though. He and Quatre go back to the circus to see Trowa and from there they'll get to Noin. So we don't lose Duo in the scuffle. :-)

Quick credit: My brother wrote the wrestling match scene when Arys and Quatre meet Duo in the gardens. Hope you all liked it.


	8. Chapter 7

Standard Disclaimer #7: I do not own Gundam Wing or its characters. I wouldn't mind owning a few Gundam models though. I'm also not making money off this story. This is purely for fun. ****

Circle of the Earth

Chapter 7

By Ceres Sky 

Heero sat on a bench in the Institution gardens, reading a technical manual. He hardly noticed the birds twittering about on the ground beneath his feet or the cloudless blue sky above him. He had asked Arys about her Gundam's Shiv rifle and how it worked, so Arys had given him the technical manual on it. For Heero, this was fascinating reading. 

Duo, Quatre, and Arys walked by, arguing about whose Gundam was the best. Heero looked up as the trio passed him.

"Arys," Heero said. 

Arys glanced back at him. Then, she stopped and came over to the bench. Duo and Quatre continued down the sidewalk, still arguing. Arys gave Heero a hesitant smile. Apparently, she still remembered how he had yelled at her yesterday. "What is it?"

She noticed what he was reading and sat down next to him. "Oh, you're reading the technical manual on the Shiv rifle." She took it from his lap and flipped through it. "Have you gotten to...?"

Heero put his hand down on top of the manual. Arys glanced at him, surprised at the motion. "Arys, I didn't call you over here to talk about the Silverwind's Shiv rifle."

Arys looked back down at the manual. "Then, what..."

Heero took the manual from her and placed it beside him on the bench. "I owe you an apology." His voice was still emotionless, but the words were what surprised Arys.

"A...an apology? What for?" 

"For getting angry with you yesterday."

Arys leaned back on her hands. "Oh that. I can understand why you got angry, Heero. What I said was uncalled for."

Heero looked away, his gaze on the trees across from them. "I should not have yelled at you."

Arys chuckled. "Well, if it's that important to you, Heero, I accept your apology. I'm just glad that you're not mad at me anymore." She stood up. "Quatre and Duo are probably wondering where I am. I'd better go."

Heero stopped her, putting a hand on her arm. She glanced down at his hand, surprised. 

"There's something else I have to tell you, Arys." 

Arys sat back down. "Something else?" She looked genuinely puzzled.

"I'm sorry I tried to kill you."

Arys clasped her hands in her lap and stared down at the ground. "I have to admit, Heero, that seeing you come after me in the Wing with the sole intention of killing me almost broke my heart." Arys looked up at him, tears sparkling in her eyes. "I'm glad that you didn't succeed."

"Yesterday, my mission was changed."

Arys involuntarily put a hand on his arm, making Heero turn and look at her. "Changed?"

Heero nodded, his blue eyes boring into her gray ones with wordless intensity. "I am to protect you at all costs."

Arys chuckled lightly. "Oh, so now you're my bodyguard." She frowned at him. "You know I don't need protecting, Heero."

"It is still my mission."

"True. Is it all right if I help you out on your new mission?" She teased him gently as she stood to her feet.

Heero nodded, looking up at her with that dispassionate gaze of his. 

Arys began to walk away, paused, and glanced back at Heero. He had already taken up the manual again.

"Oh, and Heero?" 

He looked up.

Arys smiled at him, a full-blown one. "Thanks." She left. Heero watched her until she disappeared around the corner. 

He had gone back to reading his manual for a few minutes when another voice interrupted him.

"May I sit here?" Relena asked with a smile.

Heero barely glanced at her. "It's your country. You can sit wherever you want."

"I thought I'd find you out here." Relena sat down next to him. "What are you reading?" She looked down at the book, not recognizing any of the schematics inside it.

"The tech manual on the Silverwind's Shiv rifle."

Relena looked confused for a second and then smiled. "Oh."

Heero flipped a page in the manual. "What do you want, Relena?"

Relena turned and looked at him. "You've changed, Heero. Why?"

Heero finally glanced at her, his blue eyes hooded. "Changed? What do you mean?"

Relena spread out her hands. "I don't know. You just seem different somehow."

"Oh." Heero went back to his manual.

Relena sighed. "Heero, I feel like I hardly ever talk to you anymore. Ever since..." Her voice trailed off.

At that statement, Heero raised his head and looked at her. "Ever since what?"

Relena looked down at her clasped hands. "Well, ever since..." 

Heero almost felt sorry for her, and he also realized what Relena was trying to say. "Relena..."

"Miss Relena?" Dorothy's voice interrupted them.

Relena tried to put a pleasant look on her face as Dorothy approached. She greeted the blonde-haired girl with a smile. "Yes, Dorothy?"

Heero sat with his head down, studying the cover of the manual with feigned interest. He trusted Dorothy as much as he would trust a snake. 

Dorothy bowed slightly. "The Romefeller Foundation requests your presence at a summit meeting immediately."

Relena stood to her feet. "Right now?"

"Yes. Is Arys anywhere around?" Dorothy asked, her eyes keen with interest.

Heero spoke up. "She's walking with Duo and Quatre around the gardens." His eyes narrowed slightly. "Why?"

Dorothy gave him a fake smile. "The Romefeller Foundation requests her presence as well. They read her profile and wanted to introduce her to a civilized government. After all, she's been living in Antarctica."

Heero stood to his feet. "She's not going. I think neither of you should go."

"Heero, this is a summit meeting! I have to go!" Relena stared at him in shock.

Heero took Relena aside. Dorothy watched them, that fake smile still pasted on her face.

"Relena, this is some kind of trick. It's too dangerous," Heero whispered.

"This could be the first step toward peace, Heero. I have to take the chance."

Heero stepped away from her, his eyes hidden once again. "Fine." He walked off.

"Heero, wait!" 

But the Gundam pilot did not stop. He took the path that went further into the gardens. 

"He's probably going to find Arys and convince her not to go. But I think Arys will go." Dorothy sat down on the bench and primly placed her hands in her lap.

"What makes you say that?" Relena turned back to Dorothy once Heero had vanished behind a row of trees.

"If you tell her that you want her to go, then she will go."

"I suppose it would be nice if she could come," Relena wondered aloud.

"You could get to know her better."

Relena glanced at Dorothy, a puzzled look on her face. "Is that the real reason Romefeller wants her to come?"

Dorothy smiled. _You don't know how close you've come to the truth, Miss Relena._ "Yes."

____________________

Heero, Duo, and Quatre stood on the Institution's steps, waiting to say goodbye to Relena, Dorothy, and Arys. Heero had a dark frown on his face, and he was eyeing Arys with disapproval. Duo noticed Heero's gaze and smiled. He put a hand on Heero's shoulder.

"Don't worry about Arys, Heero." Duo tried to reassure him. "She's a tough girl."

"I can't stop her from going, Duo. I don't think she realizes the danger she's in."

"Danger? What are you talking about?" Duo's eyes widened in surprise.

Heero did not have a chance to answer as Relena and Arys came up the steps to talk to them. Arys went straight up to Heero and glared at him.

"Don't worry about me, you idiot." Arys nodded to Quatre and Duo and then walked back down the stairs to the car.

Relena looked at Heero and glared at him also. "Don't you dare leave before telling me first, Heero!" 

The three boys watched as Relena swished her way down the stairs and into the car. Arys climbed in after her. Dorothy gave the boys that mocking grin of hers and got into the passenger seat. The car sped off, leaving behind a cloud of dust. Duo whistled softly.

"Whoa, Heero. You've got two girls mad at you. What did you do?"

Quatre sat down on the steps and glanced up at Heero. "Yeah, Heero. Arys seemed pretty upset."

Duo whistled again. "Arys was upset? I've seen her upset and that wasn't it! Relena was the one who was upset!"

Heero did not reply. He just turned away from the other two pilots and walked up the stairs into the Institution.

Duo plopped down next to Quatre as soon as Heero disappeared into the building. He scowled. "Hmph. You have a nice day too."

Quatre watched as Relena's car disappeared over the horizon. "Don't worry, Duo. Once they both come back safe and sound, Heero will be back to his normal self."

Duo rolled his eyes and made a face at Quatre. "Whatever that is."

_______________

Arys and Relena followed Dorothy into the Romefeller Foundation building. Arys hung back slightly, trying to take in everything at once. There were too many hiding places around here. Too many nicks and crannies perfect for an assassin to set up position. Up above her was a long balcony that seemed largely abandoned. 

Dorothy stopped in front of a door. Arys hurried to catch up. The blonde girl motioned to the door. "Arys, this is where you'll be staying while Miss Relena is in her meeting. Someone will be in shortly to take you on a tour of the building."

Arys nodded and stood by the door until Arys and Relena had turned a corner out of sight. She was about to take her own personal tour of the building when hands from inside the room grabbed her and jerked her through the door. With a thump, she landed on the floor and felt her hands yanked behind her back and her head pressed to the cold hardwood planks below her.

"Hello, Miss Walker. So good of you to join us."

Arys rolled her eyes toward the speaker only to see the handle of a gun coming down at her. She felt a jolt run through her body, and the world faded to black.

_________________

"I'll tell you nothing," Arys said softly. She wiggled her hands but they were fastened tight together behind the back of the chair in which she was sitting.

The man standing in front of her slapped her. Arys only gave him a half-smile. 

"I can't feel pain."

The man stepped back slightly, a shocked look on his face. His dark eyes narrowed. "Then, we'll just have to break you another way."

He held out his hand and one of his assistants placed a syringe on his open palm. He shoved it in her face, a mocking grin stretching across his cruel features.

"This contains a dangerous drug that alters your brain's chemical balance. We use it as a last resort, but since you're such an unusual case, we'll have to give it to you right away. Are you ready?"

Before Arys could reply, he plunged the needle into her neck. Arys sat there indifferently, trying to set up the mental barriers she had been taught in the virtual world. She hoped they would work. In a few seconds, Arys felt a deathly cold begin to creep up her legs. She shivered uncontrollably. It was as if the warmth were being sucked right out of her body. Her gaze settled on her interrogator. He watched her reaction to the drug with a chilling smile. 

"Good, it's working." He knelt down in front of her and put a hand on her cheek. "Now, tell me all that you know about the Cinq Kingdom, Arys." 

She slowly shook her head. "No," She whispered. Her mind whirled. Her mind instantly traveled to her Gundam.

The interrogator held up a small device. "Look at this, Arys. This little device can read your thoughts. You don't have to tell us what you're thinking. We can take what we need right through that transmitter behind your ear."

Arys' eyes widened in horror. She jerked her head back, trying to keep away from the man's outstretched hand. Someone behind her grabbed her head in their hands and the interrogator placed the device on top of the transmitter. Arys growled low in her throat.

The interrogator cupped her chin in his hand and stared into her eyes. Arys could see that he was enjoying the questioning. His lips pulled into a feral smile.

"Now, Arys, tell me about the Cinq Kingdom."

Arys shook her head, but the information came unbidden to her mind. Schematics, data, and conversations raced through her mind in a blur of thought. The device hooked up to her transmitter beeped insistently.

"Very good, Arys." 

"Sir! We've got everything here!" An assistant called from a nearby computer console. "It's incredible!"

The interrogator reached up behind Arys' ear and pulled the device free. He traced a finger down along the line of her chin. Arys cringed at his touch though she could not feel it, wishing she could slap him. "Thank you, Arys." He motioned to one of the assistants. "Untie her."

Arys barely felt the rope fall free from her wrists. Her whole body felt numb. She sat in her chair, feeling physically sick. She had just betrayed the Cinq Kingdom. 

_What do they want from me? Why are they using me this way?_ Arys closed her eyes, wondering why they did not just kill her right now. She deserved death for what she had just done.

Her interrogator tipped her chin up with one finger. 

"Don't feel bad, my dear. You are, after all, working for the Romefeller Foundation." 

She shook her head again. "I work for nobody." Her voice was raspy.

The man's gaze grew steely. "Arys, the Romefeller Foundation finds you extremely valuable. It would be much easier if you would join us willingly."

Arys raised her eyes to meet the interrogator's dark brown ones. Her gray eyes were cold, but the interrogator did not budge. "I said, 'I work for nobody.'"

The man snapped his fingers. An assistant appeared by his side. "I'm afraid you have no choice." He turned to the assistant. "Wipe her memory and send her back with Relena. We still need her in the Cinq Kingdom."

"What about the drug?" 

The interrogator took Arys' hand and stood to his feet, pulling her with him. Arys could barely stand, so he put an arm around her waist to hold her up. He smiled down at her, but Arys refused to look at him. He jerked her head up with his free hand and placed a hand underneath her chin. He studied her features thoughtfully. 

"You look pale, Arys. Are you feeling a little cold?" He laughed softly as he caressed her cheek. "I'm afraid the effects are permanent, my dear. Do you think you can live with it?"

Arys' only response was to tip her head away from his fingers defiantly. The interrogator let go of her and watched as she collapsed to the floor, her legs still unable to hold her up. He glowered at her, his eyes dark with rage. 

"Leave it in her. It'll be a way for her body to remember what happened here. Unfortunately, her mind won't remember a thing."

_________________

Noin barrelled through the doors of the dining hall, her eyes scanning the crowd for the three Gundam pilots. She finally found them in a corner of the room, sipping on soft drinks. She ignored the shocked stares of the girls in the room and headed straight for the boys' table with a grim expression on her face. She slammed her palm down on the table, startling Quatre and Duo. Heero only looked up at her, clearly unfazed.

"Boys, I've got some news for you."

The three Gundam pilots instantly shot out of their chairs and headed for the door with Noin in tow. 

A few minutes later, they stood in the mobile suit storage chamber, peering over Noin's shoulder at a console screen.

"The Treize faction is based in Luxembourg." Noin pointed a slender finger at a blinking yellow area on the screen. "Romefeller is here." Her finger moved to a red area only a few inches away. "Judging from Romefeller's actions within the past few hours, it looks like they're about to attack Luxembourg."

"I'll go." Heero's impassive voice seemed to echo through the room.

Noin glanced up at him. "Will you be able to take..."

"I'm a Gundam pilot, Noin." Heero's tone seemed to say that it would be enough.

"Yes, but even a Gundam pilot couldn't take over fifty mobile suits on his own."

Duo spoke up. "I'll go with you, Heero."

Heero nodded. "Fine."

Noin tapped the console. The screen blinked off. "You Gundam pilots are the only way the Treize faction can survive this battle. Suit up and Godspeed."

Heero and Duo both headed for their Gundams. Quatre and Noin watched as the Deathscythe and the Wing hovered over to the lift. The platform rose and the cargo bay doors opened. The two Gundams simultaneously shot into the air, blowing wind through the storage chamber. Noin held back her hair with one hand and put the other on Quatre's shoulder.

"Now, we have our own mission to attend to, Quatre."

Quatre looked up at her. 

"Relena's on her way back and there are enemy mobile suits moving to intercept her car. We have to stop them."

Quatre nodded. "Let's go."

_________________

Duo shoved an enemy mobile suit off his Gundam using his scythe. "Boy, this is definitely not a fair fight! Two Gundams versus fifty mobile suits. You guys are gonna lose big time!" He laughed as he chopped three more lumbering suits in half with a quick swipe of his deathscythe.

Duo was doing fine on his end of the battlefield, but Heero, on the other hand, was not faring so well. A well-placed shot had taken out the knee joint of the Wing, making the Gundam a hair short of useless. Heero was forced to use his hoverjets, but with the knee joint non-functioning, his balance was off so he was unable to get very far before having to land again. 

"I could call Duo for help, but I would never hear the end of it." Heero quickly decided against that choice. 

The Wing pulled out its buster rifle and began firing madly at the advancing mobile suits. The shots forced the frontline suits out of commission but there were still more coming. 

The Wing stumbled backwards, trying to dodge the enemy fire. A few shots made it through and slammed into the Gundam's chest, knocking it to the ground.

Heero glared at the mobile suits coming toward him. "I won't give up." He raised his buster rifle to shoot again, but three flashes blew by him and rammed right into the three mobile suits that were almost on top of him. 

"Huh?" Heero leaned forward, switching his screens as he struggled to get his Gundam back on its feet. 

He saw a man lying on the ground a few hundred feet away from the Wing. Heero finally let the Wing sink back to the ground and he popped open the cockpit door. He leaped down to the ground and ran to the injured man. He cradled the man's head over one arm.

"Are you okay?"

The man's eyes opened. He swallowed with difficulty. "Protect Master Treize. He's..." He pointed to a castle in the distance. The man's voice trailed off and his eyes shut for the last time.

Heero stood to his feet and looked off in the direction the man had pointed. 

________________

Relena glanced at Arys in the backseat. The raven-haired girl was silent. Her head was bowed slightly, and her eyes were staring blankly at the floor of the car.

"Arys?"

The girl did not reply.

"Arys?" Relena reached back for the other girl's hand and found that it was cold as ice. She jerked her hand back and looked up at the girl's face. Her complexion was pale, and she was gritting her teeth together.

"Arys, are you feeling all right?"

Arys slowly raised her head and her blank gaze came to rest on Relena's worried face. "I'm fine" was all she said before she returned to staring at the floor.

"How was the..."

"Miss Relena, get down!" Pagan grabbed Relena's shoulder and pushed her into her seat just as the car went into a skid and slammed into the highway dividing wall. Relena shrieked as she bounced around in her seat.

"What's going on?" Relena asked, but there was no reply.

She sat up to find Pagan unconscious, lying on the wheel, bleeding from a cut in his forehead. Arys still sat in the backseat, her face impassive. Arys pointed out the window.

"We were just attacked by mobile suits." Arys' distant tone made it seem like it was an everyday occurrence.

"But we're still alive."

"Noin and Quatre are here."

Relena looked out the window to see two Taurus suits coming to a rest right beside her car. 

"Romefeller just tried to kill us?"

Arys shook her head slowly. "They were not aiming to kill." Arys' eyes flashed briefly. "It was a warning."

Arys got out of the car and stood to her feet. She tapped her transmitter.

"Wait! Arys, what are you doing?"

Arys glanced at Relena, her gaze devoid of emotion. "I have to go."

"Go where?"

Arys looked up at the sky. "Heero and Duo are in trouble. I have to help them."

"You mean, Heero left without telling me?" Relena clenched her fists, but then she gave Arys a curious look. "Wait, how do you know they're in trouble?"

"I just do..." Arys' voice trailed off. Her eyes seemed to focus on something high above them. Relena lifted her eyes to see Arys' Gundam hovering above them. 

Arys raised a hand and brought it down in a small arc in front of her. The Silverwind instantly responded by coming down to the ground right in front of Arys. It knelt and Arys jumped up onto its knee. Arys turned around once she got up to the cockpit and looked down at Relena.

"I promise to bring him back to you, Relena." Then, she was gone. The Silverwind flew upwards and transformed into fighter mode. In a moment, it had disappeared into the clouds.

____________

"Heero! Listen to me!" Duo parried the Epyon's saber with his scythe, trying to knock the saber out of the Gundam's hands. 

_This is crazy! I come to look for Heero and find out that not only is he piloting a new Gundam, but he's gone mad too!_

Heero was too strong. Duo desperately hoped that Heero would not use the whip on him. He had just seen what it could do to a whole flock of enemies.

"You are the enemy." Heero's voice filtered through the comm system.

"Heero, don't let it control you!" Duo stumbled back as Heero leaped backwards and prepared to attack again.

There was no reply. It was like Duo was trying to talk to a brick wall. But that was the way it usually was anyway when he tried to talk to Heero. 

"Why won't he listen to me?" Duo asked as he raised his scythe up in a defense position.

"Because he doesn't want to." A new voice popped up on the comm. Duo glanced down at the comm screen to see Arys. "Hey, Arys! What are you doing here? You're supposed to be..."

"Get out of here, Duo. I'll take care of Heero."

Duo snorted. "You can have him. I can't talk any sense into him!"

"Talking won't work, Duo. You have to think."

"Huh?" Duo was really confused now. "What do you mean?"

"Just go, Duo. Relena was attacked in her car today, and her chauffeur is unconscious. They might need your help."

"My help? What for? Do they want me to fix the car?"

"No. The attack was only a warning. The real attack could occur anytime now. You need to help defend the Institution."

"Fine by me." Duo fired his thrusters and the Deathscythe shot into the sky. "Good luck with that maniac."

Arys flickered off his comm screen. 

"What happened to her?" Duo realized that Arys had been distant, totally different from the bubbly girl he had met only yesterday.

_______________

Arys' Gundam turned to meet the Epyon in a head-on collision. The Silverwind brandished its beam saber and managed to knock the Epyon back. The Silverwind straightened up and its eyes flashed silver.

Arys reached over and flicked the activation button for the Zero System. She closed her eyes as her emotions drained from her, leaving her even colder than she had been before. Her eyes flickered open, revealing a golden glow. 

_Defense only, Silverwind._

And with an incredible amount of effort, Arys closed her eyes again and reached out beyond the Silverwind's computer system, to the one housed in the Gundam standing before her. One part of her mind directed the Silverwind in its defense against the Epyon, another part snaked its way through the Epyon's Zero System, trying to find a connection to its pilot, and yet another part struggled to keep her from losing her mind as she performed the difficult task.

_Heero._

The thought echoed through her mind like thunder. 

_Heero._

Arys finally found the connection to Heero's mind. With a burst of effort, she plunged into it and found herself in a cacophony of thoughts. A sense of despair loomed over her and she involuntarily crawled away from it. As she moved, the riot of noise seemed to fade into the background, replaced by a dense blackness.

_Heero, can you hear me?_

Surprise shot a shaft of light into the darkness. _Arys? How did you...?_

Arys stood up and sprinted toward the source of the light. She saw his form in front of her. He was looking at her, his eyes glowing yellow. Arys stopped in front of him. She began to plead with him.

_Listen to me, Heero. Don't let the Zero System tell you who the enemy is. You know who the enemy is. The Zero System is only supposed to help you focus on the enemy. Don't let it control you._

Heero bowed his head. _I don't know how._

Arys put a hand on his shoulder. She gave him a gentle smile. _Search yourself, Heero. That is where you will find the strength to control the Zero System._

She stepped back and bowed slightly. _You will always have a choice, Heero. Be sure to choose the right one._

Arys withdrew her mind from the Epyon's Zero System. She sucked in a deep breath as she opened her eyes to find the Silverwind's cockpit around her. An incredible weariness dropped over Arys like a blanket, and her eyes fluttered closed as she slipped into oblivion. 

_____________

Heero watched in horror as Arys drifted away from him, her form fading into the blackness around him. 

_Arys!_ But she had already disappeared.

_Search yourself, Heero._ The words echoed through, around, and in him.

Heero bowed his head as Arys' departure brought back a whorl of images and sounds. They forced themselves into his mind, tempting him to cross the brink of insanity.

_I must conquer this system. I choose the enemy, not you. I choose..._

Heero raised his head to find himself shaking uncontrollably in the cockpit of the Epyon. He had finally broken free of the Zero System's influence. He looked at his screens and saw that the Silverwind stood in front of him, its eyes dark. He momentarily controlled his shaking to reach for the comm button. 

"Arys?" Her image appeared on the comm screen. She was unconscious. Her head lolled to one side, and her face was unnaturally pale.

"Arys!" Heero leaned forward, as if doing so would make her hear his voice.

"Hmmm...?" Arys' eyes flickered open. For a few seconds, Heero saw into their gray depths and noticed that they were blank. Then, her eyes closed again and she remained still.

Heero swiped a hand across his eyes. "I'm sorry, Arys." 

He sat back in his pilot's chair, watching her image on the comm screen while he tried to calm the shaking of his body. 

Fifteen minutes later, Heero reached for the controls of the Epyon. He somehow managed to get a firm grip on the Silverwind. With a yank on the throttle, Heero turned the Epyon toward Treize's stronghold with the Silverwind in tow. By the time he made it to the front yard, Heero was shaking again. Treize waited for him on the ground with a slightly amused smile on his face. Heero opened the Epyon's cockpit and walked out onto the platform. The Silverwind's eyes flashed and with a hiss, the Silverwind's cockpit door opened. 

_She is still unconscious._

Startled, Heero realized that the Silverwind had opened the cockpit door and was actually talking to him in his mind. Heero walked across the joined platforms and into the Silverwind's cockpit. Arys was slouched in the pilot's seat, still dressed in the Institution's school uniform. Heero bent down till his face was level with hers.

"Arys?"

No response. Heero put a hand on her cheek but immediately pulled it away. Her skin was ice cold. He grabbed her upper arms, ignoring the way her icy skin seemed to bite into his hands, and shook her violently. 

"Arys!"

After a few more shakes and no response, Heero picked her up in his arms and leaped out onto the platform. The Silverwind stuck out its haul line for him, and Heero held Arys close to him with one arm as he used the other hand to slide down the line. They both hit the ground with a jolt. Arys rolled out of Heero's arms and sprawled out on the grass. Heero stayed where he was, too tired to get to his feet. 

Treize walked over to where the two pilots were lying on the ground. He cocked his head to look down at Heero. "I know that girl. Is she what Epyon showed to you?"

"No. She saved me from Epyon." 

Author's Notes: I have a correction for Chapter 5. Hilde's eyes are blue not brown, so sorry to any Hilde fans out there. I don't know why I assumed that her eyes were brown. 

Boy, this was a hard chapter to write. I'm not sure why. Maybe it's because Relena's in it? :-) Anyway, if this chapter was boring, you're right.

Teaser for chapter 8: The beginning of Chapter 8 will take place the day after the last scene in this chapter, but then I'll be skipping to when the Cinq Kingdom collapses. You all probably already know what happens there. Oh, and this will probably be the last chapter of this story. I might write a sequel (I promise that these stories won't end up being a trilogy) but that'll only happen by popular demand. If you all do want a sequel, here's the gist of the plot: I'll be taking the last five episodes of the series and have Arys fight with the Gundam pilots (not Heero, since he has to go save Relena, but Trowa, Quatre, Duo, and Wufei). 


	9. Chapter 8

Standard Disclaimer #8: This is the last chapter. I don't own Gundam Wing. Pretty boring, huh? ****

Circle of the Earth

Chapter 8

By Ceres Sky 

Arys tossed restlessly on her bed. Her mind threw random thoughts at her, thoughts she didn't remember.

_Now, Arys, tell me about the Cinq Kingdom._

When had someone said that to her? Was it yesterday? A month ago? Five years ago? The voice had been cruel. Images flashed into her mind of a room, a chair, and... a needle. A man with dark eyes who had enjoyed torturing her, not with pain, but with his words. And then there was the cold, bitter cold...

Arys jerked awake, clutching the bedsheets to her chest. Her heart pounded in her ears. Gradually, she calmed down. But that cold feeling still remained with her. Arys hugged herself, trying to rub some warmth into her arms. It didn't help. Arys sighed and got out of bed. She threw on her gray jumpsuit over her pajamas and slowly opened her door.

_It happened yesterday. You were interrogated yesterday while you were at the Romefeller Foundation building. And they broke you, Arys. They broke you._ Arys told herself. Suddenly, she felt even colder. 

"Maybe something hot will help." But she knew it wouldn't. She padded toward the stairs, hoping no one would hear her.

She made her way down the steps, careful to avoid all the creaky spots. She was surprised to hear voices coming from the dining area down the hall. Who else could possibly be up at this time? She peeked her head around the door and saw Quatre, Duo, and Heero sitting around one of the tables.

Quatre spotted her and gave her a huge smile. "Hi, Arys! How are you feeling?"

Arys stepped into the room and hesitantly walked over to their table. "I'm cold, Quatre, but other than that I'm feeling fine." She looked over what was set on the table. "Cake and ice cream?" She raised an eyebrow at the boys.

Duo leaned back in his chair and placed his hands behind his head with a contented sigh. "Yup, nothing beats cake and ice cream at 2 in the morning. Want some?"

Arys shook her head.

Heero glanced at him. "Speak for yourself, Duo." Heero took a sip from his orange juice.

"I didn't ask you, Heero."

"I know you didn't."

Arys turned back to Quatre to find that he had already gone to the kitchen and come back with a steaming mug of hot chocolate. He handed it to her with a gentle smile.

"Will this help?" He asked, his blue eyes concerned.

Arys took the mug from him gratefully. "This is exactly what I was looking for. Thank you, Quatre."

"Have a seat." Quatre pulled out a chair for her, and she slid into it. He sat down next to her.

"We were just talking about the possibility of the Romefeller Foundation attacking the Cinq Kingdom within the next week," Heero said.

Arys stared down at her hot chocolate, watching the creamy liquid swirl around in endless circles. "Two days."

"What?" Duo leaned forward in his chair, the front legs hitting the floor with a loud bang.

Arys looked up from her mug to see the three other Gundam pilots staring at her in astonishment. "They'll be attacking in two days."

The three pilots were silent, still in shock.

Arys sighed. "While I was at the Romefeller Foundation, they interrogated me. Somehow they must have wiped my memory of the experience, but just now, before I came down here, I remembered everything."

At that statement, all three Gundam pilots' eyes narrowed with anger.

"They took everything I knew about the Cinq Kingdom from me, but I, in turn, got to hear their plans."

"What did they do to you?" Quatre asked.

"They gave me a drug to break me. One of its permanent aftereffects is this endless cold." Arys reached out for Quatre's hand and squeezed it gently. "It will never go away."

Quatre rotated his hand so that her hand rested in his. "Arys, I'm so sorry." He rubbed the top of her hand with his thumb. "Does anything help?"

Arys shook her head. "Not really." She let go of Quatre's hand and picked up her mug again. "Now, I think we need to stop thinking about battles for a while and talk about something different."

The three boys glanced at each other. Duo scratched his head and made a face at Arys. "I don't think we've ever spent time together where we didn't think about or talk about fighting."

Arys smiled. "I'm not surprised, given that all of you met under the circumstances of war."

"We need to plan what we're going to do when the Romefeller Foundation attacks," Heero, ever the practical one, suggested.

Quatre stood to his feet. "Actually, I have an idea. Miss Noin won't like it."

"What is it, Quatre?" Arys asked.

"I'm going to find Sandrock."

"And the Maganac Corps?"

Quatre nodded. "Yes. I'd better get to bed. I'm going to have to catch Miss Noin at 7:00 if I want to get back in time for the attack."

Duo stretched again, yawning loudly. "I'm going to bed too. Ice cream makes me sleepy."

Arys chuckled. 

Duo followed Quatre out of the dining hall, but he turned back to look at Heero and Arys before leaving the room. He winked at them.

"Make sure you turn off the lights." 

Arys nodded, still smiling at Duo. He was the only person who could really make her laugh. Sometimes she wondered what she had done before without him as her friend.

"You're beautiful when you smile," A low voice said to her from across the table.

Arys flushed and looked down at her mug. The comment was so unlike Heero that Arys was not sure at first if he had said it. She glanced up at him to see that his normally cold Prussian blue eyes had softened considerably. 

"Heero, you shouldn't be saying such things to me," Arys whispered. "I'm not..."

"You're not Relena. Yes, I know." Heero reached across the table and took her hand. "It was you I was thinking of though when I said that." 

Arys sighed as she placed her other hand over his. "We're too much alike, Heero." She raised her eyes to meet his and lost herself in their dark depths. "And I think I'm... I'm..." Arys hesitated, trying to escape the hypnotic effect his eyes had on her. She scooted her chair back as if she were going to run away.

Heero quickly came around the table and stood in front of her. He took both of her hands this time and pulled her to her feet. He looked almost amused; a smile tugged at his lips. "You're what?"

Arys jerked her hands from his grasp and hid them behind her back. They trembled slightly, with cold and with...something else. "Heero, you shouldn't touch me. The drug affects my...."

Heero stepped close to her and seized her hands again. "I don't care." He took her hands and placed them behind his neck. "Now, what were you going to say?" He held her arms in place with his hands, looking down at her expectantly.

His proximity made Arys nervous. She had felt safe with him across the table from her, but now he was standing right in front of her. She ached to just throw herself into his arms and absorb the warmth radiating from him, but something held her back. Arys swallowed. She turned her head away and considered trying to run out the door. 

"You're not going anywhere." Heero let go of her arms and caught her around the waist. He pulled her close. "Why can't you say it, Arys?" 

Arys muttered something under her breath and then glanced up at him irritably. "I love you, okay! Now, let me go!" She tried to duck away, but Heero was too strong for her. Before she could run off, Heero tightened his grip around her and kissed her. 

Arys, at first, tried to push him away, but gradually her arms circled his neck. She had been right; they were too much alike, in everything. That was why they could never stand to see the other hurt or depressed. That was why Heero had accepted the mission to protect her even if it cost him his own life. That was why Arys had come to save him when the Epyon had almost taken over his mind. Love. Arys had never experienced it before now. 

Heero whispered something against her lips. He loved her. Tears came to her eyes. It was a foreign feeling. She had never known that it would be like this. Then, Arys felt warmth spread throughout her body. It fought off the cold, dissipating it as if it had never been. Arys held onto Heero as if he were a lifeline. The rippling warmth made her shiver.

"Are you all right?" Heero whispered against her ear. He had felt her tremble.

"The drug..." Arys stammered. "I'm not cold anymore."

He laughed lightly. Arys delighted in hearing it. She had never heard his laugh before. She realized that she liked it. 

"Good." Heero smiled down at her and Arys blinked up at him, not knowing quite how to handle this new Heero. He glanced at the wall clock. "It's almost 3. You'd better go up to bed." He released her from his grasp.

Arys stepped back, her head still whirling slightly with these new feelings. "I... I..." Arys shook her head. "Okay." She could have slapped herself for how stupid she sounded.

Heero reached out and caressed her cheek, a tender look in his eyes. "Sleep well, Arys."

_____________

Quatre had left the day before in a fighter jet. He had not yet returned. Duo had gone to see Hilde, promising to return before the battle began. Apparently, seeing Heero and Arys together had made him jealous. He had said something about wanting to see his girl. Arys had just laughed at him and told him he'd better hurry back or she'd come after him.

Arys smiled at the memory as she performed some quick maintenance checks on Silverwind. Her Gundam was actually in pretty good condition. She could say the same thing for Heero's new Gundam, Epyon. Arys glanced over at the other Gundam and suppressed a shudder. The red and black scorpion-like Gundam gave her the chills. It looked evil to her. She wondered how Heero was able to handle it at all. 

"Hey." It was Heero. He had sneaked up behind her while she was staring at his Gundam. 

"Oh, it's you," Arys replied with an indifferent wave.

"That's all I get?" 

Arys nodded as she tossed a portable welder into the toolbox sitting by Silverwind's foot. "Sorry, Heero." She winked at him. "I'm a little busy right now. We've got a battle to fight in a few hours." She put her hands on her hips and gave him a stern look. "Shouldn't you be working on Epyon?"

Heero walked over to the base of the Gundam and looked up at it wonderingly. "There's hardly a scratch on it, Arys."

Arys came up beside him and laced her fingers through his. She leaned against his shoulder. "Are you sure you want to use it in this battle, Heero? What if I'm not there to get you out of the influence of the Zero System?"

"I have to control it, Arys. Somehow, I just have to."

Arys sighed. "If you think you can do it, Heero, but just in case, I'll come by once in a while to check on you."

Heero grimaced slightly. "No, Arys. If anyone will be doing any checking up, it'll be me."

The alarm klaxon began to ring, and Noin ran into the storage chamber. "Suit up, you two. We've got enemies heading in from the east already." She was already heading for one of her Taurus suits. There were a few soldiers behind her. They were the pilots of the remaining Taurus suits.

Arys turned to Heero, her fingers still interlaced with his. Their eyes locked and Arys felt for a moment as if the world stood still.

Arys whispered, "Kiss me, Heero, as if it were for the last time."

Heero did not reply, but he bent his head until their foreheads were touching. 

"I love you," He said before bringing his lips to hers. 

For a moment, the world did stand still. An eye of peace in the midst of a storm of alarm klaxons, departing mobile suits, and the threat of war.

Arys clung to him, knowing that this was probably the last time she would ever see him in the flesh. He did not realize what would happen in this battle, but Arys already knew. She always knew who would win before a battle even began. It was an accursed gift. She fought back the urge to cry as Heero's arms tightened around her, reluctant to let her go. Finally, they broke off the embrace and stepped apart. Arys gazed at Heero, trying to memorize every feature of his face. He was looking down at her, a slightly worried glint in his eyes. 

"Will you be all ri...?" 

Arys silenced him with a finger to his lips. She smiled at him. "Never forget that I love you, Heero Yuy." 

She ran toward her Gundam before she broke down crying. She could still see his face in her mind. His dark brown hair that always flopped down over his eyes. His dark blue eyes which hardly ever showed any emotion but were fully capable of showing worry, happiness, and love. The smile that would appear whenever he gently teased her. Arys quickly climbed up the ladder to her Gundam. She would cherish the memory of his face until she died. She jumped into the cockpit and flicked on all the switches to power up her Gundam.

_Today, we die, Silverwind._

____________________

Heero watched as Arys sprinted away from him. That smile. It had been tinged with sadness. As if she knew something about the battle that he did not. Then, it hit him.

"Arys," Heero whispered. His eyes filled with intense pain. "No!"

He rushed for Epyon and quickly powered it up. He would have to stay near her, make sure that she did not attempt any move that would get her killed. 

"You can't die, Arys." Heero gritted his teeth as the Epyon moved toward the lift. "I won't let you."

____________________

Arys headed straight for her starting point near the eastern border of the Cinq Kingdom. She could see a contingent of enemy mobile suits, composed of Leo, Aries, and Taurus suits, gathered just across the border, waiting for the order to attack. What stopped them from attacking right now? In fact, what stopped her from attacking right now? Arys smiled grimly. Absolutely nothing. 

Then, she saw the seven atmospheric carriers landing behind the border troops. 

_Mobile dolls._

"So that's what they're waiting for." Arys punched a button on the flightstick that loaded up the Shiv rifle.

"Arys, can you take out some of those atmospheric carriers?"

Noin's voice filled the cockpit.

Arys nodded. "I can do that. Shiv rifle's specialty. Long range shooting."

The Silverwind's Shiv rifle came up onto the Gundam's shoulder. Arys twisted her stick slightly until a carrier came into her sights. The crosshairs stopped right over the carrier's engines. 

"Target locked. Commencing firing." 

Five half-moon discs shot out of the Shiv rifle's stubby barrel and beelined for the targeted carrier. The discs collided with the carrier's engines, freeing up the volatile gases within to make for a spectacular explosion. Arys did not take the time to admire her handiwork. She immediately switched her sights to another carrier. Her crosshairs flashed red and she pulled the trigger. That carrier did not explode in midair. Its engines erupted in a diagonal pillar of flame that followed it straight into the ground. Before Arys could target the third carrier, the rest of the carriers released their cargo. Suddenly, the air was filled with Virgos.

Arys growled deep in her throat and had the Silverwind pull out its beam sabers. "We'll use both, Silverwind."

With a loud cry, she dove into the fray, spraying the mobile dolls with her Shiv rifle before slicing them to ribbons with her beam sabers. 

"Heartless, soulless monsters!" Arys yelled as she turned to meet another mobile doll. "Let's see how you deal with the Zero System!" 

Arys punched a button on her console. She willingly allowed her feelings to drain from her. She clenched her fists against the cold that assailed her. Bowing her head, she unclenched her fists. When she raised her head again, her eyes had that eerie golden glow.

"This is for the Cinq Kingdom." 

The Silverwind whirled around in a graceful arc that brought its glowing blue sabers down on top of an advancing mobile doll. The Virgo crumbled to pieces beneath the powerful stroke. When the Silverwind was finished, the doll had been reduced to a pile of smoldering metal on the ground.

The Silverwind seemed to stand there for a moment, looking at the remains of the mobile doll. Then, it flew off, barrelling into a trio of mobile dolls advancing toward it with their shields raised. The Silverwind became a point of light in the distance and then came back, its beam sabers raised. It fired its thrusters downward and it leaped up, coming down on top of two of the shielded mobile dolls with its sabers digging into the shields. Soon, the sheer power of the sabers overwhelmed the shields and the shields collapsed. With no resistance to stop them, the sabers plunged through the shields and into the chests of the two mobile dolls. For a few seconds, they hung in the sky, impaled on the two sabers. Then, they slid off, falling to the ground below. The remaining mobile doll kept its shields up, trying to hit the Gundam with its beam rifle. The Silverwind dodged all the shots and flew below the mobile doll. It came up under the mobile doll and took out the shield again with its double beam sabers. With a quick somersault, the Gundam positioned itself in front of the now defenseless mobile doll and fired one disc into the doll's chest. The structure of the doll flashed with yellow fire before imploding in on itself with a horrific blast of flame. 

Arys scanned the screen in front of her. It was literally awash with red dots. There were too many enemies for even a pilot using the Zero System to handle. 

"I'll just have to destroy as many as I can." 

_________________

Heero had already succumbed to the full control of the Zero System and now he fought in a blind rage. He had been assigned to the woods and was leaving trails of massive explosions behind him. Two mobile dolls to his right disintegrated as soon as he flew by with his whip extended.

"Everyone is my enemy."

_Search yourself, Heero._ The voice echoed softly through his mind, but it was too far in the background for him to notice it. 

Heero shook his head. His dark eyes narrowed slightly. "This is the only way."

He ignited his beam saber and flung it in the face of a Virgo that had come up behind him. The Virgo tumbled backwards, smoking. It hit the ground hard, bouncing a bit before coming to rest. Epyon raised its saber high above its head and brought it down on top of the helpless Virgo. It exploded on contact. The Eypon blasted away, suffering little damage from the explosion.

Heero saw a circle of mobile dolls ahead, shooting at something in the woods. He pulled back on his flightstick and Epyon shot into the air, right above the circle of mobile dolls. He reversed thrust and the Gundam dove down toward the circle. The Gundam skidded to a stop right in the middle of the circle and extended its whip. The Epyon whirled around in a circle, slicing through eight mobile dolls. As soon as it completed the revolution, the Gundam shot back into the air. Heero looked down and saw a circle of fire. He smiled.

__________________

Relena stared out the window, watching as her precious country dissolved before her eyes. Romefeller was winning and their meager forces were losing. She wrestled with the thought of defeat or surrender. 

_So many lives wasted already._

Dorothy came up behind her. "You should retaliate, Miss Relena. Call for help from the other nations. They would come to the aid of your country."

"Dorothy, that would only create more problems." Relena turned away from the window to glare at the other girl. "Earth would erupt into civil war."

"What choice do you have, Miss Relena? Who should rule the Earth? Romefeller or the Cinq Kingdom?"

Relena slammed her fist down on the table. "Neither, Dorothy! The Earth should be ruled by no one. Each nation should have its independence."

"Miss Relena, your idealism is encouraging, but it is impossible. Man will always live to fight. It is in our nature. There is no way to stave off the flow of anger and hatred." Dorothy clenched a fist to her heart. "Man naturally enjoys war."

"You're mad, Dorothy." Relena frowned at her, disturbed at her words. "No man enjoys killing others of his kind."

"Even if the Earth managed to live in peace, what of the colonies?"

"The Earth must learn to coexist with the colonies."

"They are two completely different worlds, Miss Relena. Neither can even comprehend the state of the other."

"But we can try, Dorothy." Relena stared out the window again. An idea had come to her, but she had to think more about it before she actually said anything. 

_______________

Noin slammed her gun into the chest of an enemy mobile suit. It fell backwards, off-balance but unhurt. It quickly regained its balance and prepared to fire its beam rifle at her. Before it could pull the trigger though, a lance of energy brushed by her, pounding into the mobile suit's chest. The enemy suit fell backwards again, but this time, it exploded on the way down.

"Miss Noin! Are you okay?"

Noin glanced down at her comm screen. "Quatre! You made it!"

Quatre nodded. "I got my Sandrock back. And I brought my army with me."

Noin bowed her head gratefully. "Thank you, Quatre. We could sure use the help."

The Maganac Corps skillfully maneuvered its way across the sand at the beach. Mobile suits that got in their way were quickly dispatched with a shot from their beam rifles.

"Maybe we have a shot at winning this war after all." Noin smiled at Quatre.

"Miss Noin, this war won't end until one side gives up." Quatre had a grim look on his face. "It's only the question of which side will be the one to surrender first."

________________

Relena whirled away from the window. "Dorothy, I've made my decision. Take me to a comm center."

Dorothy curtsied. "Certainly, Miss Relena." _I knew she would give in sooner or later._

The two girls headed for the Institution's comm center. Dorothy keyed it on for Relena.

"Go ahead, Miss Relena." Dorothy respectfully stepped back.

Relena looked sadly at the blank screen on the console in front of her. She pushed the transmission button.

"People of Earth and the colonies." She paused slightly. "The Cinq Kingdom is currently under attack from the United Earth Sphere Alliance. As I speak, mobile suits are demolishing the country that is my home. Too many brave soldiers have died in this battle. In the interest of universal peace, I regret that I must surrender to the Alliance. The Cinq Kingdom is a pacifist nation, but the Cinq Kingdom is no more. Peace is a noble goal that cannot be achieved through war; it must be achieved through the use of non-violent means. My surrender is an example that peace can be attained without the use of weapons. Please, do not let the ideals of my father disappear from your hearts. He believed in total pacifism, and I will for as long as I live." 

Relena stepped back, releasing the transmission button.

"Well-spoken, Miss Relena." Dorothy hid her surprise at Relena's decision. "We must go now."

"Go?"

"Miss Relena, you are now a prisoner of the Romefeller Foundation. Follow me."

____________

Heero spotted a flash in the sky above him. He keyed his crosshairs onto it and waited for its form to become recognizable.

"Wing Zero." His half-closed eyes widened a little as he traced the outline of the powerful Gundam.

"Heero Yuy. Now, we can finish this battle." Zechs Marquise came up on the comm screen. 

Heero nodded and the comm screen flickered off. 

Both pilots were fully under the control of their Gundams' Zero Systems. No reasoning could stop their fighting now.

Red and green clashed in the sky above the shoreline. The two Gundams had unsheathed their sabers and were hacking away at each other savagely. Epyon pulled out its whip, but the Zero managed to dodge the snapping energy rope. 

The battle went to ground, with both Gundams parrying with their beam sabers. 

____________

"Relena's surrendered to the enemy!" Quatre exclaimed. 

Noin sighed. "We no longer have any use here. Let's go, Quatre."

"How can we just leave, Miss Noin?"

"The war is over, Quatre. You were right. The only way for this battle to end was for one side to give up. Ours gave up."

Quatre pushed up his goggles and looked down at Noin's image on his screen. "Where will we go?"

Noin looked upwards. "To outer space."

_______________

The Zero leaped forward, slicing its beam saber right into the Epyon's shoulder. The gundanium armor smoked a little, but Heero barely noticed it. His focus was intent on one thing and one thing only. 

"Zechs Marquise. You will die for this." 

Epyon brandished its saber like a broadsword and ran forward. The saber rammed straight into the Zero's shield, keeping the saber from doing any damage. However, Epyon's strength overwhelmed the Zero and it tumbled off the sea cliff, crashing onto the rocks below. The surface of the Gundam flickered slightly with streaks of blue electricity.

The Epyon began to flicker as well. Both Gundam's Zero Systems shut down due to overload. And the eyes of the Gundams went dark.

______________

The Silverwind flew over the shore as if searching for something. Its eerie silver eyes flashed in the twilit sky as it crossed the beach.

"There," Arys said to herself. 

She saw two pilots sitting on top of a sea cliff. They both stood to their feet when her Gundam approached the edge. With a gentle thud, it landed on the grass. Heero ran to the base of the Gundam. Arys popped open the cockpit hatch and quickly slid down the haul line. She landed in Heero's arms and he gathered her close as if he would never let her go.

"You're alive." He touched her face as if to make sure that she was real.

Arys nodded against him. "As are you." She smiled up at him.

Heero's eyes narrowed as the other pilot approached. Arys turned in his arms to see Zechs Marquise walking toward them, an amused look on his face. Heero stepped in front of Arys, his gun drawn. 

"Relax, Heero. I don't need to know who she is. I already do. Hello, Arys Walker." Zechs nodded to her.

"Zechs." Arys' voice was neutral. She had never liked Zechs Marquise, even in a simulation.

"Heero, I think you should take the Wing Zero. I'll take the Epyon."

Arys walked to the edge of the cliff as Heero and Zechs talked. Her gaze settled on a row of bobbing lights out to sea. What were they?

_Silverwind, can you get me a reading on those lights?_

_Romefeller assault craft. Four atmospheric Virgo carriers._

Arys ran to the two pilots standing a few feet away from her. She took Heero's arm and dragged him over to the cliff edge. She pointed at the lights.

"Those lights spell trouble. They'll be here in a few minutes."

"What are they?" Heero squinted at the lights, trying to make out their forms.

"Romefeller assault craft. And four mobile doll carriers."

Zechs stepped beside them. "You two can take care of them. I'll get the rest of them here on land." He turned on his heel and strode for the Epyon.

"I'll take the Zero. Go get in your Gundam, Arys. I'll meet you in a few minutes."

Arys sprinted for Silverwind as Heero vaulted over the edge of the cliff. She climbed into the cockpit and waited for the Zero to show up. Ten minutes later, both Gundams had transformed into fighter mode and were on a heading for the assault force. 

______________

Duo shot into the Earth's atmosphere. The Deathscythe's hull warmed up slightly, but not enough to worry him any.

"I can't believe Relena surrendered!" Duo was still flabbergasted by the girl's decision. "There's probably no one left to fight!"

He activated his hyperjammer as he entered the Cinq Kingdom and noticed flashes of light coming from along the shore of the country. 

"Hmm... Wonder what's going on there?"

Duo grinned as he pushed down his throttle. "Couldn't hurt to find out."

______________

Arys knew they were outnumbered. There were thirty-two mobile dolls against two Gundams. Plus, the ships carried powerful anti-aircraft guns. She was having a hard time keeping her attention focused on the Virgos with the assault ships taking potshots at her. Arys fired her modified Shiv rifle at a mobile doll. The blast barely weakened the shielding. Her rifle was quickly running out of energy and from the look of Heero's face on her comm screen, she could tell that his buster rifle was losing power as well. 

She pulled out one beam saber and threw it at the approaching mobile doll. The saber bounced off the shield, but the throw was powerful enough to knock it out. The Silverwind flew down and caught the saber before it hit the water, and with an upward thrust, drove the saber into the mobile doll. It exploded on the tip of her saber, damaging her armor.

"I can't take much more of this, Heero." 

Heero nodded. "I know. Neither can I. We're not powered up enough to take on these mobile suits."

Arys spotted an erratic signature on her radar. "Duo," She whispered. She looked down at Heero's image. "You have to go, Heero." 

"I'm not leaving, Arys. Not without you."

"This force cannot be allowed to reach land, Heero. You're in better shape than I am. I should stay."

Heero's eyes darkened with anger. "No, Arys! I can't let you do this!"

Arys reached out to his image on the screen. She touched his face with one finger, wishing it were real. She choked back a sob. She hated to do this to him after all they had been through together. But she knew this was something she had to do. The ultimate sacrifice: giving her life to save the lives of others.

"I need to do this, Heero."

_Silverwind, activate the self-destruct. Set for two minutes._

"Change your mission from protecting me to protecting Relena, Heero. If this world is to know any peace at all, only she can accomplish it."

"I don't understand!"

Arys gave him a teary smile. "Aishiteru, Heero."

"Arys! What...?"

She flicked the comm switch off. 

______________

Heero dove down after the Silverwind, knowing that there was really nothing he could do to stop her.

"Arys!" Heero yelled into the comm. She refused to answer him. He knew she could hear him. "Listen to me! This is crazy!"

A dark shape shot down toward the Zero and yanked it upward. "Heero, are you nuts? What do you think you're doing?"

"Arys is down there!" Heero exclaimed when he realized that it was the Deathscythe that had grabbed his Gundam.

"What?" Duo's voice was tinged with shock. "She's the one who's nuts!"

"Arys, turn off that self-destruct sequence!" Heero tapped his comm button.

"She's going to self-destruct?" Duo was still in shock. One of his best friends was about to commit suicide. "She can't do that!"

The two Gundams were about to go down and stop the Silverwind when a ball of fire enveloped the assault force, knocking the two Gundams even further into the air. The remaining mobile dolls disintegrated in the blast. Shockwave after shockwave slammed into the Zero and the Deathscythe. For a moment, all Heero could see on his screens were billowing clouds of smoke. The destruction of the Silverwind had destroyed the entire assault force. 

Heero regained his balance first and scanned his screens, hoping for a glimpse of the Silverwind. Debris bobbed on the ocean waves and the hulking wrecks of the assault ships drifted aimlessly. The Silverwind was nowhere to be found. 

"No," Heero whispered. "She can't be dead."

"I can't believe she's gone." Duo's expression was one of sadness. "And she was such a great pilot..." Duo's voice trailed off.

Heero bowed his head, his eyes closing in grief. "No, Arys. Why? Why did you die? You didn't have to sacrifice your life!"

Duo looked at his friend worriedly. "I'm sorry, Heero, but we should go before any reinforcements show up. We can come back later if you want. If there's anything left..."

Heero's screens switched to the ocean waves. He watched as they slowly rose and fell. Somewhere beneath those waves, the Silverwind rested. Someday, he would find it. Heero keyed on his comm screen and rewound to the moment Arys had activated the self-destruct sequence of her Gundam. He wished that he had been able to say a proper goodbye to her. Heero reached for the screen, stopping just short of touching her image's cheek.

"Aishiteru, Arys."

______________________

_As long as humans exist, there will be war._

_____________________

Origin of Title: I picked up this fanfic's title from the Bible. 

Isaiah 40:22 

It is he that sitteth upon the circle of the earth, and the inhabitants thereof are as grasshoppers; that stretcheth out the heavens as a curtain, and spreadeth them out as a tent to dwell in. 

Pretty amazing, isn't it? Isaiah knew the world was round long before Galileo began to study the stars! I guess people were smarter back then.

Author's notes: Well, it's been fun, folks. I hope it wasn't too romantic at the beginning of this chapter. I know, I know, the ending is a sort of cliffhanger, but that's usually the best way to end a story, isn't it? Oh, and for all of you who don't know Japanese (although I'm sure most of you do know what the next term means), 'Aishiteru' means 'I love you.' Also, I know that the way the battles went in this chapter weren't exactly like in the series, but I claim poetic license :-) After all, I don't have an audiographic and photographic memory. So, until next time, Gundam fans! 


End file.
